The Spanish La Liga resumes on Friday with round 14. Check out our full betting preview below.
The last International break of the year is done and dusted. The two big guns Barcelona and Real Madrid continue to set the pace in the early stages and will look to maintain this run until the Christmas break.
A new date for the El Clasico has been confirmed, the rescheduled match will take place on Wednesday, December 18. Can Madrid and Barca drop points before the big match?
Friday 22 November
Levante 8/10
Draw 26/10
Mallorca 32/10
Both teams have won their respective games prior to the international break. However, Levante has been comparatively more consistent than Mallorca, especially when playing at home where they have collected 11 points from six matches.
The visitors are five points clear of the red zone thanks to their impressive home record. On the road, Mallorca are the complete opposite as they have the worst travelling record which has seen them lose all of their five matches, conceding 12 and scoring only two in the process. The hosts beat Barcelona 3-1 in their last home fixture and will be oozing with confidence in this encounter. Back Levante to win this one.
Saturday 23 November
Leganes 57/10
Draw 7/2
Barcelona 9/20
We kick off the Saturday matches with a top vs bottom encounter. The hosts are yet to hit the ground running this season and are rooted at the foot of the table, with only one win from 13 matches.
Barcelona returned to winning ways last time out when they thrashed Celta Vigo 4-1 thanks to a Lionel Messi hat-trick. The champions are tied on points with their arch-rivals Real Madrid and they can’t afford to drop any more points. Back them at 9/20 and include them in all bets.
Real Betis 29/20
Draw 24/10
Valencia 18/10
It’s not often that we see Real Betis in the relegation battle in round 14, but the hosts have been very poor this season, winning just three matches thus far.
Valencia are five points off the leaders and they’ll want to close the gap and make it four wins on the bounce. Valencia should beat this struggling Betis team.
Granada 37/10
Draw 21/10
Atletico Madrid 9/10
The wheels are coming off at Granada, who started the campaign like the house on fire. After three consecutive defeats, Granada are now out of the top six. Atletico Madrid are struggling without their record signing Joao Felix, who’s expected to return to training this week but might not be fit for this encounter.
Diego Simeone will hope to have him fit and firing as soon as possible as Diego Costa could be ruled out for three months. After winning just once in their last three, this is now a must-win game for Atletico Madrid if they are to win the league. This is a tough match, but back Atletico Madrid to come out on top.
Real Madrid 4/10
Draw 17/4
Real Sociedad 57/10
Conceding just one goal in their last six matches proves that Zinedine Zidane has worked on his defence that was leaking in goals, with Real Madrid keeping a clean sheet in each of their last five games.
Young players like Federico Valverde and Rodrygo are really stepping up for Los Blancos, while Karim Benzema is scoring for fun. Sociedad shocked the football world last year when they picked up maximum points in this fixture and they’ll be hoping to cause another upset. However, I’m backing the hosts to oust their opponents.
Sunday 24 November
Espanyol 7/4
Draw 19/10
Getafe 37/20
Sunday’s action gets underway at the RCDE Stadium where a struggling Espanyol welcome Getafe. The hosts have been nothing but poor this season and most of that is due to the fact that they are participating in the Europa League.
Espanyol had a fantastic record at home last season and that saw them qualify for the Europa League, but unfortunately the same can’t be said this season, with the Catalans losing all six of their home fixtures. Getafe missed a good opportunity of closing the gap at the top of the table as they played to a goalless draw at home to Osasuna. Back these sides to cancel each other out.
Osasuna 31/20
Draw 39/20
Athletic Bilbao 2/1
Osasuna will be keen to keep the good run going, with the hosts unbeaten at home, winning and drawing three from six matches. Jagoba Arrasate’s men stretched their unbeaten run to five matches when picking up a point at Getafe last time out.
Athletic Bilbao need to start winning their away matches if they are to get top four this season. The visitors have been terrible on the road, drawing four and losing two of their six away matches. This match is written draw all over it.
Eibar 8/10
Draw 24/10
Deportivo Alaves 36/10
Eibar will welcome Alaves with mixed results in their form in the La Liga table. Alaves are winless on the road, losing five of their six matches, while conceding 16 goals in the process. The hosts are blowing hot and cold this season, winning and losing three of their six home matches.
These sides are tied on 15 points and a winner here will steer clear of the relegation zone. Because of home advantage, back Eibar to win this one.
Villarreal 15/20
Draw 28/10
Celta Vigo 7/2
Villarreal have the perfect chance to get back to winning ways when they host a struggling Celta Vigo side. The Yellow Submarine are winless in three matches and a win here will see them get back into the top half.
Celta Vigo have lost each of their last five La Liga matches and if this slump continues, they will, unfortunately, join the like of Las Palmas in the Segunda Division. Villarreal should bounce back with a win here.
Valladolid 29/10
Draw 5/2
Sevilla 9/10
Sevilla are unbeaten in each of their last seven matches and will look to extend that run and close the gap on the top two who lead them with a point. Julen Lopetegui’s men have really improved in recent weeks and his side has really looked like a team that can challenge for the league, especially if the likes of Barcelona and Real Madrid are so inconsistent.
Sevilla took six points from their opponents last season and they will hope to extend that impressive head-to-head form come Sunday. Back Sevilla to edge this one.
QUAD TIPPED @ 6/1
Villarreal Win 15/20
Atletico Madrid Win 9/10
Real Madrid Win 4/10
Barcelona Win 9/20
Written by Banele Pikwa
