Sevilla v Barcelona
Saturday 23rd February 1515rs
Football – Spain – La Liga
Pick Under 2.5 goals
Bookmaker Marathon Bet
Odds: 161/100 (odds taken 20.30 GMT, Friday 22nd February)
It’s a top four clash in Spain on Saturday as Sevilla continue their efforts to stay in the Champions League places whilst Barcelona lead the way and have a chance to increase the gap at the top before their rivals play on Sunday.
La Liga Betting at Marathon Bet
Sevilla Preview
Sevilla secured a safe passage through to the last 16 of the Europa League courtesy of a 2-0 win at home to Lazio in midweek, moving on with a 3-0 win on aggregate. There association with that competition is obvious and they will be feared by whoever they face in the next round. Attention turns to league matters now for Pablo Machin, however, and they are in pole position to finish in the fourth and final Champions League position, although there are plenty of dangers behind them and their form since the turn of the year has not been to the standard the coach would have hoped. The biggest issue for Sevilla is how contrasting their fortunes are at home compared to when on their travels. It’s just one loss at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan in the league whereas they have lost six of their 13 away games, that includes their last four with their last victory away from home in La Liga come in September. It will be a welcome return to home comforts on Saturday, in that case, and a chance for them to lay down a marker to those sides hoping they drop points against the league leaders. Just six points separate themselves and Levante down in 12th spot so there really is plenty to play for in the remaining 14 games of the campaign.
Key-Facts – Sevilla v Barcelona
- This is a crucial game in both team’s season as Sevilla look to cement their place in the top four and Barca aim to stretch their lead at the top
- Sevilla defeated Barcelona 2-0 at this venue as recently as a month ago
- Barcelona have the best away defensive record in the league and have managed just two goals in their last four matches, conceding just one
Barcelona Preview
Ernesto Valverde and Barcelona have agreed to trigger a contract extension for the head coach meaning he will be at the club beyond the initial two years. It seems strange timing considering there is so much to play for in the remainder of this season but the former Athletic Bilbao coach has clearly satisfied the board of directors and it will provide some assurance and stability to the team. The Spanish champions were in European action of their own during the week, playing out a goalless draw away to Lyon in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie. Valverde will be hoping to complete that job when the clubs meet again in the Nou Camp but it looked to be another laboured performance from Barca. It followed an extremely unimpressive 1-0 win at home to struggling Rayo Vallecano last Saturday. It was another three points though, and they now hold a seven-point cushion of Atletico Madrid, and a further two ahead of Real. It’s entering a really crucial period of the season for the champions as they have a double header against Real Madrid to come after their trip to Sevilla. Both games are at the Bernabeu with Wednesday’s game coming in the second leg of the Copa Del Rey before that massive league game the following Saturday.
Sevilla v Barcelona Betting Preview
These two clubs have had plenty of experience of playing each other with the first league meeting of the season back in October as well as being drawn together in the quarter finals of the Copa Del Rey. Barca have certainly had the upper hand by virtue of winning two of those games, and convincingly as well – 4-2 in La Liga and 6-1 in the cup. Sevilla have shown that they are able to compete with them, however, with a 2-0 success in the first leg of that cup clash, which happened to be at home.
Sevilla have not lost at home in the league since September so the visitors will know just how tough this game is going to be. Barca are also on something of a slump – if you can call it that – having picked up only one win in their last five games. Lionel Messi has be surprisingly quiet in the past couple of weeks with suggestions rife he’s still not fully fit and we know that everything goes through him for Barca. That’s had a direct impact on their fortunes in attack with their last four games resulting in only two goals scored. This is a fixture which tends to feature goals but the visitors have the best away defensive record in the league this season and with their misfiring attack at the moment I expect this to be a game that they look to keep tight.
