Valencia - Real Sociedad

Valencia aim to carry the confidence of their recent victory at Deportivo Alaves into this encounter at Estadio Mestalla. The hosts face Real Sociedad on 20 September 2026 for matchday 7 of LaLiga, hoping to stabilize their campaign after a difficult start. Defensive reinforcements will be tested as Cesar Tarrega and Mouctar Diakhaby remain sidelined, leaving the expected XI to rely on the defensive pairing of Aaron Mayol and Justin De Haas to anchor the backline alongside Stole Dimitrievski.

Real Sociedad arrive in a fragile state following a midweek defeat to AFC Bournemouth and a heavy loss against Atletico Madrid. With Igor Zubeldia missing due to injury, the visitors look to Mikel Oyarzabal and Takefusa Kubo to spark a revival. Their last meeting in May produced a high-scoring 4-3 thriller in favor of Valencia, setting a competitive precedent for this latest clash between the two sides.