as we enter the final week of spain’s la liga, there’s still a lot to be settled for several clubs. great rivals real madrid and barcelona are locked in a two-horse race for the title, whilst villarreal, athletic bilbao and real sociedad do battle for the two uefa europa league places.
with so much at stake, we should be in for a thrilling last day in la liga. with our live odds comparison, top tips and predictions, we’ll be previewing five of the weekend’s biggest matches in spain.
fran escriba’s villarreal are in pole position to claim one of the two europa league places, as they sit fifth in la liga, a point above athletic bilbao and real sociedad. victory at valencia on sunday will guarantee them a place in europe next season.
the yellow submarine head to the mestalla as the 11/8 favourites at bet365, whilst the draw is available at 13/5 with sportingbet.
valencia, meanwhile, go into this one off the back of two successive victories, and salvador gonzalez marco’s men will be looking for a hat-trick of wins to end their rather average season. the oranges are priced at 2/1 (betfair) to upset villarreal on sunday.
we believe the hosts are good enough to take a point on the final day, leaving their opponents’ hopes of claiming a european place in the balance. at 13/5 (sportingbet), we believe the draw is your best option in this one.
although diego simeone’s atletico madrid never troubled the top two in la liga this term, they should be pleased with their third place, securing another year of uefa champions league football in the process. this sunday, they entertain ernesto valverde’s athletic bilbao in the vicente calderon’s final match.
bilbao head to the capital knowing a win will seal a place in the europa league. however, the bookies have them as long as 14/5 to claim maximum points at the calderon.
william hill are offering the best odds on a home triumph, pricing madrid at 11/10. meanwhile, you can get the draw at odds of 13/5 with betfred.
atleti will be hoping to say goodbye to their magnificent stadium with a win on sunday, and we predict they will get their wish. the standout bet in this one is the hosts to win with a -1 goal handicap, which is available at 11/4 with coral.
real sociedad won’t give up on a europa league spot whilst it’s still possible. however, even a win against celta vigo at balaidos may not be enough, but a draw might be if bilbao lose at the calderon.
out of the three sides fighting for a european place, you would have to say that eusebio sacristan’s sociedad arguably have the easiest task. still, it won’t be that easy, considering celta have already beaten barcelona and real madrid this term.
the bookies have sociedad as their 3/4 (betway) favourites. meanwhile, sporting bet’s 10/3 for the draw looks tempting, whilst vigo are priced at 15/4 with bet365.
the white and blues head into this one in good shape, having won three and drawn two of their last five la liga fixtures. we think that fine run will stand them in good stead at balaidos on sunday, so betway’s price of 3/4 for an away win is worth a punt.
the big issue in la liga is who out of real madrid or barcelona will win the title. on sunday evening, zinedine zidane’s los blancos – who top the table after a stunning 4-1 win at celta vigo on thursday night – make the trip to malaga for their final match of the season. a point will be enough for real to claim a 33rd spanish league title.
malaga will not be an easy nut to crack, though, as only last month they beat barca 2-0 at the la rosaleda. michel’s side will fancy their chances of pulling off a memorable double by also beating real on sunday. betfred have the tasty price of 12/1 for the home side to win, while the draw is available at 13/2 at william hill.
since being beaten by barcelona in heart-breaking fashion last month, real have hit back in style. after winning well at balaidos on wednesday night, zidane’s men made it five league wins on the spin, moving three points clear at the top in the process.
we can see real sealing the title without any hiccups on sunday. betway are offering just 1/4 for an away victory, so we feel there’s better value in coral’s 8/13 for los merengues to win with a -1 goal handicap.
barcelona will be looking to do their job in a professional manner when they welcome eibar to the camp nou on sunday evening. on what will be an emotional day, luis enrique will take charge of his final barca league match.
blaugrana should have no problems whatsoever beating eibar, but it’s what happens in real’s game in malaga what really counts. since losing at malaga last month, credit must go to enrique’s boys for winning their following six games and pushing their rivals so close.
as expected, barca are the overwhelming favourites to claim maximum points in this clash, with betway offering just 1/16. meanwhile, for a shock eibar win, betfair have whopping odds of 70/1. you can even get the draw at 1500/100 (sportingbet).
with that said, coral’s 1/2 for the home side to win -2 is worth a nibble, but we still don’t think it will be enough for barcelona to claim a third straight la liga title.