The Spanish La Liga has football fans covered this weekend with some mouth-watering fixtures and TV-friendly kick-off times. There’s plenty for supporters of La Liga to get stuck into on Sunday, with three games on the schedule. The action begins at 16:30 when Villarreal welcomes last season’s champions Barcelona for an eagerly-anticipated clash. The locals hope to make their home advantage count, while the visitors are the pundits’ pick to leave with all three points. Can Barca deliver the goods?
The away team sent shockwaves throughout European football last term when bouncing back from possible catastrophe to pass Real Madrid and be crowned champions of Spain. There was no doubt Barca would get back to where they wanted to be and ensure a competitive La Liga, but few expected them to return too quickly and in such a fashion. They sent out a statement of intent that with or without Lionel Messi, second-best is never good enough. They’ve set the bar for others to challenge.
Villarreal and Barcelona met twice last season, with Barca claiming six points on their way to the championship. They won the first game 3-0 at Camp Nou before driving home their advantage with a hard-fought 1-0 on the road, the winning goal scored by Pedri in 18 minutes. Will Sunday bring repeat for Barca or revenge for Villarreal? We can’t wait to find out live on television.
Hosts bring a mixed bag
Villarreal enjoy the home advantage against last season’s all-conquering champions. But we now have a clean slate, and the locals will hope they can catch their star-studded opponents out early. If they can put Barca on the back foot in the opening few minutes and gain the backing of the support, who knows what might happen. The home side understands they are the underdogs here but doesn’t seem overly concerned by the opinion of the traders and pundits. They often play better when written off by experts.
Placed tenth after two games, Villarreal lost their opening match of the season but bounced back to claim victory on matchday two. It’s still early in the season as new players find their feet and the squad continues to grow its fitness, but this is an interesting test for Villarreal.
Bet hereHow they perform against the champions at home will give an indication of how the season will play out. A 2-1 home loss to Real Betis wasn’t good enough, but they were better when beating Mallorca 1-0 on the road.
Visitors unbeaten in two
The champions travel to Villarreal unbeaten in their opening two games as they put down a marker for their defense. The leading pundits can’t see past two titles on the bounce for Barca, and if their first two performances are anything to go by, they’ll take some shifting. The likes of Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid are already up against it. But the visitors don’t arrive with the perfect record many expected.
The team from Camp Nou raised the curtain on their defense with an uninspiring draw against Getafe on the road. It was a game most expected them to win comfortably, hitting the ground running by bagging three points, putting on a show, and scoring a few goals. We got a frustrating goalless finish which neither team worked hard enough to win.
Lessons were learned, and after passing up too many opportunities on matchday one, they beat Cadiz at home. Goals from Pedri and Torres stole the show, although the first of those hit the net on 82 minutes. Fans demand more of the same on Sunday.
Villarreal v Barcelona prediction
On paper, Barcelona should win this game. They are the champions, have the better-quality squad, and already have more points on the board. They weren’t perfect in the opening week, but it’s plain to see this team will improve. If they continue progressing in the manner expected against Villarreal, they should have enough skill to win the game.
The home team has learned to cope with being the underdogs, even on their patch, and that’s where the crowd plays a part. The support must back the players, and the attackers must take their chances. A big ask against a solid Barca defense and an opponent that breaks with pace.
La Liga odds
22bet members can bet on Villarreal to win this game at 3.54 or Barcelona at 1.975. Fancy another draw? The level finish is 3.78.
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