la liga is simply the best football league in the world at the moment and those enjoying it today can revel in the knowledge that in lionel messi and cristiano ronaldo they are watching two all-time greats produce footballing magic. our la liga betting preview takes a look at the biggest games this weekend, offering betting tips and predictions as well as the latest live odds comparison to get you the best value for whatever matches you choose to bet on.
real sociedad v elche betting tips
the first game of la liga this weekend takes place on friday night and we predict david moyes will get his first win as boss of real sociedad as they welcome elche to the basque country. both sides have 10 points from 12 games but there is little doubt that moyes has the better players at his disposal and whilst it will take time for him to get his ideas across we think sociedad will prove too good here.
clearly both sides are struggling but the home team will be buoyed by their new manager and the reasonable draw they claimed in the scot’s first game in charge. elche are in decent form though, with two draws and a win in their last three so are sure to interest some at odds of 5/1 here, whilst the draw may appeal at 14/5. on balance though we simply have to side with the home team and our betting tip for this one is to back real sociedad to win and both teams to score, available at nice odds in a game we predict will end 2-1.
malaga v real madrid betting tips
the second big la liga clash this weekend kicks off on saturday evening and sees the league leaders travel to malaga. when madrid come to town there is one prediction that can always be made with great certainty and that is that there will be goals. real average almost four goals per game whilst their away matches have averaged more than five goals per game in total and so this one should be a thrilling encounter for the neutral as we predict more of the same here. prior to their champions league clash with basel on wednesday, carlo ancelotti’s men were on a sensational run of 12 straight wins and we have to expect that to continue here.
the visitors can be backed at betting odds of just 1/3 here, which may seem short against a malaga team currently sixth in la liga. the draw is priced at 19/4 whilst those betting on the home win can get twice that – 19/2! some are sure to be tempted by those odds but we just can’t see anyone containing this awesome real attack and backing the home side to win both halves, or both teams to score and the real win are both good bets, whilst over 3.5 goals is also a nice safe bet at shortish odds.
valencia v barcelona betting tips
perhaps the biggest game in la liga this weekend is on sunday night, as fourth placed valencia host barcelona who are currently four points and two places better off. barca know they can afford few mistakes, such is the pace real are setting, whilst valencia may feel a draw is a decent result and one that could help them to a top four finish come may. barcelona are clear favourites here and the bookies are predicting a relatively easy win for the catalan outfit, offering betting odds of 8/13 for messi and co whilst valencia are available at odds of 19/4 and the draw is priced at 7/2.
messi now holds the records for most la liga goals and most champions league goals, taking both records in empathic fashion with back to back hat-tricks – beat that cristiano! the argentine is oozing confidence at the moment and we can’t see the home side being able to contain him in this unstoppable form, the little maestro benefitting from having luis suarez alongside him. valencia are unbeaten at home in the league this season but our prediction is that the run will end here, with our main betting tip for this match being barcelona to win by two goals at very nice odds.
atletico madrid v deportivo la coruna betting tips
the defending la liga champions welcome deportivo to the capital and with the sides separated by 16 points and the visitors in the relegation zone it doesn’t take a genius to predict a home win here. the odds, of course, reflect that, with atletico priced at just 1/5 compared to odds of 6/1 and 19/1 for the draw and the away win respectively. even at that huge price we simply cannot see any value in a bet on the visitors though in what we predict will be a comfortable home win.
deportivo have just one away win and have previously lost 8-2 at home to real and 4-1 at sevilla, so it may be a question of how many for diego simeone and his team here. they have scored almost three goals per home game this term in la liga and so our prediction here is for atletico to win by three or more goals, an attractive bet at odds of around 8/5.
sevilla v granada betting tips
with sevilla in fifth and pressing for champions league qualification and granada 15th, just one point clear of the bottom three, these sides are desperate for the points for very different reasons. on paper and going by the odds this has to be a home win and that is exactly our prediction, with sevilla decent value even at odds of just 4/9. if that’s a shade short for your betting preferences, our other betting tip for this one is sevilla to win to nil as the visitor are without a goal in their last three la liga games.
other matches
getafe v bilbao
espanyol v levante
celta vigo v eibar
cordoba v villarreal
almeria v rayo vallecano
