Spanish La Liga: Gameweek 14 Preview

Atletico Madrid suffered their first defeat of the season when they succumb to a 2-0 loss against rivals Real Madrid. 

Image copyright – Steve Haag Sports

Real
Sociedad returned to the top of the table despite playing their third
consecutive draw. Barcelona are still nowhere near top spot as they lie eighth
on the log. Can Real Madrid top the log before Christmas break, or will
Sociedad hold on?

Friday 18 December 

Athletic Bilbao 1/1 
Draw 21/10 
Huesca 31/10 

Luck seems to have run out for Athletic Bilbao, as they are currently struggling to get into the top half of the table. They had a great start to their campaign but since then have failed to recreate that magic. However, they are at home this Friday, and finally have a comparatively low-profile opponent after several gameweeks. 

Last week Huesca finally won a La Liga game when beating Alaves 1-0. To be honest, Huesca have been decent and they’ve drawn a lot of games which they could’ve won. This is a tough game, so I suggest backing Both Teams to Score at 23/20. 

Saturday 19 December 

Atletico Madrid 2/11

Elche 20/1

Jan Oblak
conceded an unlucky own goal as Atletico Madrid fell to a first La Liga defeat
of the season to rivals Real Madrid. The defeat sees Real Sociedad leapfrog
Diego Simeone’s men at the top of the table. Atletico are now second on the
table, tied on 26 points with log leaders Sociedad. Real Madrid are now three
points behind Atleti which means this is a must-win game. Atletico have the
best home record, winning five of their six matches – scoring 15 goals and just
conceding just once. Home to Win Both Halves
at 14/10.

Barcelona 1/4

Valencia 17/2

Barcelona
are nowhere near their best this season and are playing like an average team
and struggling against bottom-half teams. Ronald Koeman insisted Barcelona are
still in the La Liga title hunt, but to me, I really think it will be
impossible for them to win unless big changes happen at the club. Valencia have
lost just once in their last seven La Liga matches and their performance
against Real Madrid, when they won 4-1, will be used as motivation ahead of
this encounter. Barcelona cannot be
trusted against anyone at the moment, so, I’ll back Both Teams to Score at
7/10.

Osasuna 11/4

Villarreal 21/20

Osasuna are
rock bottom in the league this season with their troubling form. Winless in the
last six matches of which five were defeats and they’re also leaking a lot of
goals. Villarreal started the season very well but they have been held back by too
many draws recently. The Yellow Submarine have drawn each of their last four
matches and that has seen them move out of the top four. This is a great
opportunity for them to return to winning ways as they are facing the worst
team in the division. Back the visitors
to win this one.

Levante 26/10

Sociedad 21/20

It’s a
difficult game after another for Levante. Last week they went toe-to-toe with
Barcelona and they gave them a good fight. Now they welcome log leaders Real
Sociedad, which for me will even be harder than last week’s game if we go by
current form. Sociedad retuned to the top after playing their third consecutive
draw. The visitors are also winless in six matches across all competition with
all six matches ending in a share of the spoils. Levante have also drawn five
of their last seven matches. As the form
suggests, back these sides to cancel each other out.

Sevilla 11/20

Valladolid 57/10

In-form
Sevilla welcome Real Valladolid to the Estadio Sanchez to wrap up Saturday
fixtures. The hosts have won four of their last five matches and only lost
against Real Madrid. Sevilla have won seven of their last nine matches and the
only two defeats were against Chelsea and Madrid. The Europa champions are
seven points away from the top and have two games in hand which means we can
fully say they are currently in the title race and should be taken seriously. Back the hosts to win here. 

Sunday 20 December

Celta Vigo 8/10

Deportivo Alaves 34/10

Celta Vigo
caused major upsets in back-to-back weekends after beating Granada 3-1 and last
week, beating Athletic Bilbao 2-0. Alaves suffered their first defeat in six
matches when losing 1-0 to Huesca last time out. The betting suggests that this
will be one-way traffic, but I think it will be harder than it looks. I’ve been a fan of Alaves and because of
the price, I will take the 34/10, I think it’s worth a chance.

Granada 33/20

Real Betis 33/20

Granada
finally returned to winning ways after they beat Elche last time out and they
will look to make it back-to-back wins to be in a good position before heading
into the Christmas break. Real Betis have been blowing hot and cold this
season. Last weekend was their first draw of the campaign. Both teams have been
attacking, scoring goals while also leaking goals at the back. Back Both Teams to Score at 15/20.

Cadiz 9/4

Getafe 31/20

Cadiz have
been the better performer from all the newly promoted teams this term. The hosts
have shown a mixed form in the campaign, with five wins and four losses in
their 12 attempts. They are surprisingly sixth on the log standings and have
beaten Barcelona and Real Madrid. Getafe have been hit hard by COVID-19. They
were flying before lockdown but since we’ve returned, they’ve been a shadow of
themselves. The visitors are 15th on the standings with just three wins, four
draws and five defeats. Back Cadiz to
win this one.

Eibar 11/2

Real Madrid 5/10

Real Madrid
had a very good week after topping their UEFA Champions League group and were
comfortable winners against Atletico Madrid. The champions are now third on the
standings, three points behind log leaders Real Sociedad and have a game in
hand. Zinedine Zidane’s men are slowly picking up and creeping closer to where
they would like to be before we head into the Christmas break. Back Madrid to win here. 

DOUBLE @ 4/1

Athletic Bilbao vs Huesca BTTS 23/20

Atletico Madrid Win Both Halves 14/10

Written by Banele Pikwa