This was the best night they had in 40 years, and there was no one there, not to start with. As they warmed up out on the smallest, bobbliest pitch in Primera, preparing to play for a place in the semifinal of the Copa del Rey for the first time since 1982 and only the second time in their entire history, Rayo Vallecano's players were all too aware that something was wrong. Something else at a club where every day brings a new problem, where players admit this isn't the way it should be, and the team's president and fans are engaged in open warfare.
Rayo Vallecano have never been better, but divide between owner and fans has never been greater
