The La Liga title race seemed over just a few months ago. The unlikely sides like Sevilla and Real Betis seemed to offer some resistance, but now Real Madrid’s age-old foes, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid have finally arrived at the party with an outside chance of edging the league in spectacular fashion.
Friday night sees Sevilla attempt to rekindle some form, before Atleti and Real face their respective challenges, and on Sunday, Barcelona lock horns with Levante, who finally picked up their fourth win of the season, lifting off the bottom of the table.
A 25/1 quad went out the window last gameweek, so we’ve dumbed the odds down a bit to regain confidence. Be sure to check out the reliable treble on offer.
Friday 8 April
4/10 Sevilla | Draw 34/10 | Granada 7/1 (21:00)
Ivan Rakitic returned to the stadium where he enjoyed so much success in Sevilla’s last outing. A 1-0 loss at the Camp Nou is nothing to be disheartened by, however, when you concede 19 shots, six of which hit the target, plus dropping from second to fourth all in one weekend, the morale in the camp takes a massive knock.
Granada was desperate for form in their tie against Rayo Vallecano, and a great performance was on display, unfortunately drawing 2-2. Sevilla went winless for the month of March and Granada picked up a solitary win for the entirety of the year, so both teams are desperate to get back on track. The draw is a big runner.
Saturday 9 April
9/4 Cadiz | Draw 22/10 | Real Betis 13/10 (14:00)
Real Betis were knocked out of the Europa League last month and can focus solely on securing a spot in Europe for next season. A first-half of quickly thought-out attempt and an exquisite finish from Juanmi earned him two goals before the break.
Manuel Pellegrini’s men didn’t let up after the interval and Portuguese midfielder William Carvalho brilliantly worked a goal out of nothing to get the crowed riled up again.
A final score of 4-1 to Betis will leave the side feeling uber-confident in dismantling Cadiz who are fighting hard to maintain their place among Spain’s elite. The draw no bet at 6/10 on the away team is good enough for a multiple.
7/2 Mallorca | Draw 24/10 | Atletico Madrid 17/20 (16:15)
Who else but Joao Felix to open the scoring in the 11th minute for Atletico Madrid’s last performance? And from young to old, Luis Suarez was also on the scoresheet, twice, making sure that the saying ‘class is permanent’ rings true.
A 4-1 victory before Atleti’s midweek Champions League appearance will definitely have the side overflowing with confidence throughout the week. While Atleti have acquired six straight wins, Mallorca have racked up seven straight losses; 17/20 on an Atletico Madrid win is a gift.
1/1 Villarreal | Draw 24/10 | Athletic Bilbao 11/4 (18:30)
Villarreal put us out our 25/1 quad last gameweek, and as an Arsenal fan, I now dislike Unai Emery even more. The inconsistency of the Yellow Submarine continues to surface more often than it should. A 2-0 loss to Levante regardless of superior possession stats, or shots at goal is the only takeaway I am looking at.
Athletic Bilbao is in the prime position to jump their current opposition on the table as the race for European placing tightens. Villarreal are seventh on 45 points, and the away side are eighth on 44. The home side have yet to beat Athletic Bilbao in six previous attempts and I’m not confident they will now. Back Bilbao to take this win and pip their counterparts on the La Liga standings.
4/10 Real Madrid | Draw 36/10 | Getafe 13/2 (21:00)
After good stints by other sides to push Real Madrid, it seems their old foes Barcelona and Atletico Madrid will chase them to the finish line now. Real’s third loss of the season, at the hands of Barcelona was dramatic, but the run for the title still lies in their hands.
The last performance was not a rotation of the squad – possibly in preparation for UCL tie with Chelsea – and the missing piece that was evident in the Barcelona defeat, Karim Benzema, was on call to net two goals earning all three points for the giants.
Getafe will be confident in stealing crucial points off the log leaders, having defeated them earlier in the season, but I have no doubt a home team win is worth backing.
Sunday 10 April
17/20 Osasuna | Draw 24/10 | Alaves 34/10 (14:00)
After tasting three successive defeats, Alaves are now rock bottom in the La Liga standings. The positive to take away is three goals scored in just as many games showing that there is a fight in the Glorious One.
Alaves have only beaten Osasuna twice in La Liga over the last two decades, both 1-0 victories at the Estadio El Sadar, maybe adding a tinge of desire to take this encounter. Osasuna have not faced back-to-back defeats this year. The resolve and adaptation from the mind of head coach Jagoba Arrasate will earn the home team win but include both teams to score on that matchbet at 38/10.
17/10 Espanyol | Draw 43/20 | Celta Vigo 17/10 (16:15)
Espanyol played the closing encounter versus Real Sociedad for gameweek 30 to no avail. It is their first defeat in three fixtures since their 5-1 drubbing by Villarreal. Since then, everything has been decided by small margins, including this recent loss.
On the flipside, Celta Vigo are winless in three since their 4-3 thriller over Mallorca. So, the form guide points straight to Espanyol bouncing back to decide 11th place and possibly a top-half finish. Espanyol on the matchbet and under 3.5 at 24/10.
49/20 Elche | Draw 9/4 | Real Sociedad 11/10 (18:30)
The first chance dropped for Real Sociedad in the 10th minute against Espanyol last time out and the game would continue in that manner for the first 45.
Five minutes into the second half, Alexander Sorloth had the ‘opening goal’ disallowed by VAR, and a penalty six minutes into stoppage time converted by Swede Alexander Isak collected all three points. Elche have suffered four defeats in their last five, and although they are six points clear of the drop, every point matters. Real Sociedad to win and under 2.5 goals at 34/10 is the way to go.
54/10 Levante | Draw 39/10 | Barcelona 4/10 (21:00)
Our editor, Chad Nagel, took the honours of writing the featured game of Barcelona versus Sevilla and was on the money! Barcelona have been in fine form and were able to create chance after chance last time out. It took a moment of brilliance from the future of Barcelona, Pedri, to twist and turn two players on the edge of the box before pocketing his shot in the bottom left corner, earning all three points for Barca, putting them second on the table.
The home team were able to grab a shock 2-0 win over Villarreal, jumping to 19th on the table over the last gameweek, but against a team gunning to close the gap for the title, there’s not a sniff of a draw to say the least. Place Barcelona in all your slips as a straight bet, but if you’re looking for value, the Catalan giants on the -1 handicap at 21/20 is the play.
Monday 11 April
13/10 Rayo Vallecano | Draw 9/4 | Valencia 22/10 (21:00)
Ever since the 4-1 defeat to Barcelona, Valencia have re-enforced their defensive structures – undefeated in five La Liga appearances, conceding just one goal in just as many games. After going winless this year, Rayo Vallecano’s draw with Sevilla and a 1-0 loss to Atletico Madrid seemed like they are heading in the right direction, but the recent 2-2 draw with a relegation-fighting Granada says otherwise. Back Valencia to steal an away victory.
TREBLE @ 3/1
Barcelona Win 4/10
Real Betis Draw No Bet 6/10
Atletico Madrid Win 17/20
