It’s hard to remember that Real Madrid started the season with four wins in five unbeaten matches. They’ve won just two league game since and suffered yet another humiliating defeat last week when Eibar beat the three time defending European champions 3-0. Valencia have had their own problems winning this season. They have drawn eight of their 13 matches and could secure another point on Saturday at best betting odds of 4/1.
After beating fellow Catalan side, Espanyol, in Barcelona last weekend to extend their unbeaten run to five matches, Girona are eagerly anticipating the visit of Atletico Madrid. Atleti took a point off Barcelona last Saturday and are full of confidence themselves as they’ve not lost in La Liga. Diego Simeone’s men will be wary of the threat of their hosts though so expect their resolute defence to keep the scoring down. Our odds comparison shows under 2.5 goals is odds-on but 8/15 still looks a fair price to us.
Barcelona have been fortunate that their main rivals for the Liga title have been so poor this season. Ernesto Valverde’s men are 10 points worse off than this time last season but should add another three points to their tally at home to Villarreal. The Yellow Submarine are struggling big time with just three wins all season and will have a very tough time keeping the score down at the Camp Nou let alone winning. That makes the football betting odds of 7/4 available on Barcelona with a -2 goal handicap seem very tempting.
La Liga Odds including Atletico v Barca
New Real Madrid manager, Santiago Solari, has made it clear that winning the Liga title is at the top of his lengthy list of priorities. The Real Madrid players have taken to life well under their new boss but and should keep the pressure up on the teams above them with a win over Eibar. That’s certainly what odds comparisons for the match suggest as Real are the clear favourites. Eibar are a decent side but should be no match for a rejuvenated Real so bet on the away side to win with a one goal handicap at best betting odds of 27/20.
Atletico Madrid’s unbeaten home record will come under serious strain on Saturday evening when Barcelona visit the Wanda Metropolitano. The football odds show that Barcelona are the favourites but not all is rosy with Ernesto Valverde’s squad. Barca lost 4-3 at home to Real Betis before the international break and have conceded nine goals in their last four matches. Although Atletico like to keep things tight at home it makes sense to expect goals in this one. You can profit from an entertaining start by backing both teams to score in the first half at a tempting price of 9/2 – great value in our opinion.
November 3rd Odds Comparison: Will Real Recover
Diego Simeone is frustrated that his team have been unable to take full advantage of the poor start to the season made by Barcelona and Real Madrid. Atletico have ground to make up at the top of La Liga but should at least add three points to their tally against Leganes. Mauricio Pellegrino found life tough in English football and it’s not going much better for him at Leganes who are struggling for goals. The football betting odds on Atletico winning to nil stand out at 5/4.
Julen Lopetegui was either hopelessly out of his depth or badly let down by the Real Madrid players depending on who you listen to. Those arguments will rumble on as does Real’s search for a new manager. There’s sure to be a strange atmosphere at the Bernabeu when Valladolid visit on Saturday. Odds comparisons show that Real Madrid are the overwhelming favourites to win but Valladolid have let in just seven goals in 10 Liga matches. That makes under 3.5 goals looks too big to ignore at odds of 10/11.
Are the football betting odds overplaying the absence of Lionel Messi? The Barcelona talisman is still recovering from a fractured arm and won’t play against Rayo Vallecano but his teammates beat Inter Milan and scored five against Real Madrid in the Clasico without him. Barcelona’s chances of winning the title improve the quicker that Messi returns but – with all due respect to Rayo Vallecano – their chances of winning on Saturday remain incredibly high. Barca have scored nine goals in their last two matches so could well score at least three on Saturday evening.
2018 El Clasico Betting Odds Comparison
By all accounts, Julen Lopetegui is a dead man walking. After all the controversy surrounding his Real Madrid appointment and dismissal from the national team, it appears as though it is all going to end in tears. Real were awful in their narrow Champions League win over Plzen and it could all unravel in El Clasico at the Camp Nou. Barcelona’s odds to win have lengthened to evens due to Lionel Messi’s fractured arm that will keep him out of the match. Barca have to deal with the loss of just one player though, Real Madrid barely have anybody playing well so expect a home win, with evens great value.
Atletico Madrid aren’t exactly struggling in the same way as their city rivals, Real Madrid, but they have dropped points on more occasions than Diego Simeone is happy with. Atletico were held to another draw last time out against Villarreal and will have to be on top of their game to pick up all three points against Real Sociedad. Atletico have a fearsome defensive record at home but Sociedad have scored in every away game so far. That makes the football odds available on both teams to score well worth taking at 13/10.
Talk about making hay while the sun shines. Alaves have taken full advantage of the problems suffered by the big sides in La Liga and currently sit third in the table, just a point off top spot. Odds comparisons clearly show that the bookies don’t believe this run can continue for long and Villarreal are the favourites for Sunday’s match at general football odds of 11/8. The Yellow Submarine are winless in three matches though while Alaves are unbeaten at home. That makes the best betting odds of 9/4 on the home side look like a price not to be ignored.
La Liga Odds with Barcelona v Sevilla in the spot
At most clubs, being two points off the top of the table after eight games would be a decent return. Real Madrid are not most clubs though. Their start to the season has gone down so poorly with the Madrid fans and owners that Julen Lopetegui is in danger of losing his job. Saturday’s game against Levante is an absolute must win for Lopetegui. The international break may have helped in that it gave the Real Madrid squad a break. They’ll return ready to put things right and could beat Levante by at least two goals at best betting odds of 11/10.
While Real Madrid have been struggling under their new manager, Atletico Madrid have been ticking along nicely under the stewardship of Diego Simeone. Atleti showed they remain as tough to beat as ever by securing a point at the Bernabeu in the Madrid derby and then ground out a 1-0 win over Real Betis. Villarreal are struggling to score enough goals but Simeone won’t be taking them lightly so expect another rather cautious performance from Atleti. Our odds comparison shows the away side are the narrow favourites and we think they can win a low scoring game to nil at 9/4.
It’s now four La Liga games without a win for Barcelona. That’s led to some fans questioning whether Ernesto Valverde is the best man to take the club forward but he and his players have a chance to kickstart their season when table toppers Sevilla visit the Camp Nou on Saturday night. Barcelona are the only side to score more goals than Sevilla this season. Moreover, the away side’s confidence is high thanks to four straight wins and Barcelona have major defensive problems. Therefore, the football odds available on over 3.5 goals look fair at 3/4.
La Liga 6th – 7th October Odds
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What a shocking couple of weeks it’s been for Real Madrid. After being beaten 3-0 by Sevilla, Julen Lopetegui’s men were held 0-0 at home by Atletico and then fell to a head scratching 1-0 defeat away to CSKA Moscow in the Champions League on Wednesday. Real’s recent form leaves with many issues to sort in the long term but in the short term it may be bad news for Alaves. Real Madrid are in need of a thumping win so the best betting odds for this match could be the 19/20 available on the away team to win and over 2.5 goals being scored.
Atletico Madrid were made to work harder than they’d like to beat Club Brugge on Wednesday night. A stunning goal from Arnaut Danjuma saw the teams go in level at the break and Atletico were sweating on the win before Antoine Griezmann and Koke secured the three points. Real Betis provide another tough challenge at the Wanda Metropolitano on Sunday. Our odds comparison shows this is set to be a tight match but Atletico’s defensive solidity and world class attackers should see them win to nil at 6/5.
Valencia and Barcelona both had profitable trips to London in midweek. It was Barcelona’s 4-2 win over Tottenham that had all the entertainment though as Valencia played out a goalless draw with Man United. A lack of goals has hurt Valencia this season and they only secured their first win of the Liga campaign last time out against Real Sociedad. Keeping that run going against Barcelona will be very tough. The football odds have shortened a little on Barca but having clicked into gear they look good value to win with a one goal handicap at odds of 9/5.
Barca are top with a 100% record and Leganes rock bottom with just a single point from four games; many will be piling into the Catalans for a big win here. However, we think Leganes will surprise a few people and this should be a relatively close encounter. Our odds comparison sees the draw priced at 6/1, which is worth considering. They drew with Real Sociedad at home and only lost 1-0 to Villarreal. Even so, we think Barca will ultimately get the job done and our tip at big odds is the away win by two goals.
This is a top of the table clash, with second hosting fourth, although Espanyol will do well to maintain their position come May. Real brushed aside Roma 3-0 in midweek and we fancy a similar score here. Despite their clean sheet last time out, we fancy Los Blancos will concede here though, as they have in three of their four league games. Real are priced at best betting odds of just 2/9 in the outright betting so increase those odds by throwing in both teams to score too.
La Liga is the top tier of Spanish football and consists of 20 teams. Officially known as the Primera Division, it is the pinnacle of men’s domestic football in Spain and, in the eyes of many experts, the best league in the world.
La Liga is dominated by its two icons, rivals Barcelona and Real Madrid. It was founded in the 1929-30 season and since then the two giants of Spanish football have won the title 58 times (correct as of the start of the 2018-19 season). Only seven other sides have tasted glory in the competition, between them winning La Liga a total of just 29 times.
A distant third in the overall Liga glory stakes are Real’s city rivals Atletico. They have won the title 10 times, most recently in 2014. The only other time the hegemony of the top two was broken in the 21st century was when Valencia claimed their fifth and sixth titles in 2002 and 2004, both under the stewardship of Rafa Benitez.
It is often claimed that, whilst the Spanish top flight may be the best in the world, that claim is true more or less solely due to the strength of the big two. Whilst it is true that Real and Barca are footballing behemoths, with 10 Champions League titles between them since the start of the century, to focus only on these two does the league a disservice.
European Dominance
Those that espouse the belief that it is the Premier League that can lay claim to being the best often point to the strength in depth of the English top flight. However, Atletico Madrid and Valencia have both made two CL finals since 2000. On top of that, La Liga has a staggering record in the Europa League.
As with the Champions League, Spanish clubs have won Europe’s secondary trophy a record number of times. Moreover, again they have been dominant in the last 20 years or so. Since 2000, Sevilla have claimed the Europa League trophy five times, Atleti have added three titles to the Spanish locker and Valencia were successful in 2004. On top of that three further Spanish clubs have appeared in finals in this time, Alaves in 2001, Espanyol in 2007 and Athletic Bilbao in 2012.
Quite simply, La Liga has to be considered the best league in European and indeed world football. The money spent by the Premier League in England cannot be matched but it is telling that the very best players, the best of the best such as Gareth Bale, Luis Suarez and of course Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, usually end up in Spain.
Betting on La Liga is fun and exciting too, with Real and Barca frequent additions to many accas, albeit at short odds. Of course, if you oppose them and get it right, the odds are often superb too and whatever you want to bet on our odds comparison will easily help you finds the best betting odds.
Liga Structure
La Liga follows a standard format for a major European league, with 20 teams playing home and away and a season that runs from August to May. It initially featured just 10 clubs in 1929, gradually expanding over the years and sticking at 20 since 1987, bar a brief experiment with 22 from 1995 to 1997.
The bottom three sides are relegated each year, replaced by two teams from Spain’s second tier, the Segunda División. Spain, like England, has four Champions league places up for grabs, as well as three Europa League spots.
More and more Liga games are available to view these days, with some streamed online too. If you haven’t yet watched much Spanish football you really are missing out. Ronaldo may have left La Liga for Italy but Lionel Messi and a host of other stars are simply a joy to behold.
Spanish La Liga 2018/19 – Opening Week Tips
Spanish champions Barcelona get their Liga campaign underway on Saturday night with a home clash against Alaves. With a total of 93 points last term, the Catalan giants had almost double Alaves’s total of 47 and with Lionel Messi’s men at home, it’s no surprise to see them as short as 2/17 with the bookies for the win.
If you fancy an upset then you can oppose the home side but we predict it will be a fruitless bet and equally best betting odds of 9/1 for the draw and 33/1 for Alaves hardly seem like value. The corresponding fixture last term was actually pretty close, with Barca sneaking a 2-1 win, although away from home the champions were marginally more comfortable, triumphing 2-0.
Unsurprisingly Barca were superb on home soil, winning 16 times in the league at the Nou Camp and drawing their other three clashes. With Alaves losing 12 times on the road the home win is an obvious bet but such short betting odds won’t appeal to many punters bar those including the favourites in an acca.
In truth, everything is pointing to an easy win for the Liga champions so you can take your pick of how to get bigger odds. Barca to win both halves, to win to nil and also Barca/Barca in the half time/full time market are all worth considering.
However, our tip for this one is Barcelona to win with a -2 goal handicap, which is to say we fancy them to win by three goals or more. Seven of their home wins last term came by that margin or better, whilst Alaves were hammered at Real Madrid and, surprisingly, 4-1 at Getafe.
Betting Tip: Barcelona -2 Goal HandicapReal Madrid v Getafe – New Era at Real to Start with Easy Win
Real Madrid have a new manager, with former Spain boss Julen Lopetegui having replaced club legend Zinedine Zidane at the helm. Madrid also start a Liga campaign without Cristiano Ronaldo for the first time since the young former Manchester United star joined in 2009.
It really is a new era at the club and having won La Liga just once since 2011-2012, it is the domestic competition that may be top priority for the club who more or less own the Champions League trophy!
Last term Los Blancos finished third in the Primera Liga, some 17 points behind Barcelona and three points behind city rivals Atletico. They conceded too many goals and were surprisingly poor on home soil.
Lopetegui will look to put both of those issues right and whilst it will take time to get his ideas across, having Thibaut Courtois in goal will certainly help. Replacing Ronaldo’s goals and will to win will prove trickier but we certainly fancy them to get off to as good start here.
Getafe overachieved last term to finish eighth but we suspect they may find things a touch harder this year. Real did the double over them last term, including a 3-1 win at the Bernabeu. We predict a similar result this time but our betting tip is for the home side to keep a clean sheet and win 3-0, available at very solid betting odds.
Betting Tip: Real Madrid to Win 3-0The best game of the “weekend” may well be one of the last, as the side that finished fourth last term host the runners-up on Monday night. These secondary giants of Spanish football are the only teams to have broken the Real/Barca title duopoly since Deportivo lifted the trophy in 2000. Can either mount a serious title challenge this time around?
The bookies make the visitors the slight favourites but there isn’t much in it, with Atleti available at best betting odds of 8/5. That compares to 15/8 for the hosts with the draw priced at 9/4 in our odds comparison.
This is a game that could well go either way and last term both teams won their home game against the other. Neither side drew too many games last term and whilst a stalemate does appeal we’re going to be bold with our betting tip. We fancy the visitors, who have had a good summer in the transfer market so far, to nick this one after a tight first half.
Betting Tip: Draw/Atletico Madrid in HT/FT