La Liga Betting: Sevilla and Real Madrid to serve up goal feast on Sunday

"Game of the week in Spain and then some, the Sunday night game pits Europe's in-form side against their most likely challengers at the top of La Liga"

Barcelona v Las Palmas
Saturday, 15:15

For the bigger teams, midweek cup dates are often an unwelcome distraction at this point in the season. But Barcelona must have been thankful for the opportunity to get back on the horse on Wednesday night, putting a torrid week behind them with a 3-1 Copa del Rey victory over Athletic Club.

This time there was nothing for Gerard Pique, who stirred the big pot marked 'refereeing conspiracy' after a couple of questionable decisions in the draw against Villarreal last weekend, to sound off about. Instead, good vibrations abounded: Luis Suárez scored a cracker, Neymar netted for the first time in three months and Lionel Messi did the usual.

Issues still remain; as long as Barça remain five points (and a game in hand) off the summit, Luis Enrique will continue to feel the heat. But they have a decent chance of shortening that gap this weekend, with Real Madrid travelling to Seville and Las Palmas pitching up at the Camp Nou.

For the hosts, this is a good match-up: Quique Setién's side play an attractive brand of football but are unlikely to get in Barcelona's faces. And while Las Palmas can be delighted with how their campaign is shaping up, they are not brilliant travellers: just five of their 24 points have been won away from Gran Canaria.

Odds of 1.12 for the home win are unbackable, so instead we'll go for a slightly contrarian option. While Barça's defence isn't always reliable, they have kept clean sheets in three of their last five home league games. Las Palmas, meanwhile, have failed to score in two of their last three away. There's minimal difference in the odds between Barcelona Win to Nil and 'No' in the Both Teams to Score? market, so we'll plump for the latter to keep the 0-0 onside.

Recommended Bet
Back 'No' in the Both Teams to Score? market at 1.88

Valencia v Espanyol
Sunday, 11:00

"This result is a huge psychological blow," said interim Valencia boss Voro after the 3-3 draw with Osasuna last weekend. In truth, the real kicker was the way the result came about: Los Che led on three occasions and were denied a much-needed victory in injury time.

It was just the latest disappointment in a season full of them, and left Valencia just one point above the dropzone going into the weekend. There is now no doubt that they are in a relegation battle; Voro's decision to rest most of his key players for the midweek cup game against Celta Vigo spoke volumes of his priorities.

While there were some signs of life against Osasuna, they ultimately failed to get the job done against La Liga's worst side. That's now eight league games without a win, so it's a surprise to see Valencia chalked up as odds-on favourites against Espanyol on Sunday.

Quique Sánchez Flores' side have endured a tough run: they lost heavily to Barcelona, got knocked out of the Copa del Rey by second-flight Alcorcón and toiled to a 1-1 draw with Deportivo La Coruña last weekend. But they are a better side than Valencia (10 points separate the sides in the table) and their only away defeats in La Liga have come at the hands of far more accomplished sides (Sevilla and Barça). They can add to Valencia's misery on Sunday lunchtime.

Recommended Bet
Back Espanyol +0.5 at [2.01]

Sevilla v Real Madrid
Sunday, 19:45
Live on Sky Sports 1

Game of the week in Spain and then some, Sunday's meeting between Sevilla and Real Madrid should be a treat, pitting Europe's in-form side against the team who - for the moment at least - look like their most likely challengers at the top of La Liga.

Sevilla have been imperious in the league, one freak defeat to Granada aside. Celta Vigo, Málaga and Real Sociedad have all be swatted aside in their last three matches, with an aggregate scoreline of 11-1, while only Barcelona have taken points from them at the Sánchez Pizjuán.

That firepower was in evidence when these sides met in the Copa del Rey on Thursday night: Sevilla roared into a 3-1 lead that momentarily gave them hope of overturning a three-goal deficit from the first leg in the capital. But there was to be no miracle: Sergio Ramos - a former favourite in Seville - and Karim Benzema struck late to salvage a draw Real.

It would be wrong to read too much into that game, not least because both Jorge Sampaoli and Zinedine Zidane rested a number of players. Yet Benzema's strike was an important one, for it extended Madrid's unbeaten run in all competitions to a staggering 40 matches. That's the longest streak of its kind in the history of Spanish football and not to be sniffed at.

The betting angle here is goals: both sides are far better going forward than they are defending. Sevilla's home matches have produced an average of 3.63 goals per game; Madrid's away matches have produced 3.71. With those stats, we are happy to take on the 3.5 line.

Recommended Bet
Back over 3.5 goals at 2.28