Cordoba C.F. vs Rayo Vallecano preview - Gomez sounds rallying cry

Abel Gomez has challenged already-relegated Cordoba to cap a "complicated season" by ending Rayo Vallecano's hopes of a seventh-placed Primera Division finish on Sunday.

Cordoba host Rayo in their penultimate top-flight match before dropping out of Spain's premier competition.

Sunday's hosts have failed to find the net in their last six league games, and will set an unwanted La Liga club record if they draw another blank this weekend.

Rayo, by contrast, could secure a four-game unbeaten run for the first time since April 2014 - they currently sit 11th in the table but are still battling to chase down Malaga in seventh.

"We are in a complicated situation," said 33-year-old midfielder Gomez.

"We have a home game which we have to win - that's what we have to keep in mind."

Cordoba lost 2-0 at Granada last week, following on from an 8-0 demolition at the hands of champions-elect Barcelona.

Gomez knows full well the battle to lift morale as the players confront being rooted to the foot of the table, but vowed to keep wrestling with that task.

"It's been a difficult season and it hurts," he told Cordoba's official club website.

"Rayo are a daring team that play good football and are fighting for seventh place - but we can still hold that back.

"It will be another difficult game for us but we must try to complete our season at home with a victory."

Rayo boss Paco Jemez is refusing to give up on securing European qualification for his side, with a seventh-place finish still possible.

The 45-year-old is a rumoured target of both Newcastle and now Brentford, but is determined to focus on finishing the lague season in style.

"The maths says yes," he told Rayo's official website.

"Our obligation is to fight for these six points. It's not up to us alone, but it is a nice challenge."