Atletico Madrid v Barcelona Betting Preview – La Liga 14th October 7.45 pm
This is the highlight match of the next round of La Liga matches. Barcelona are bossing things at the top of the table having won all seven of their league outings this season. So they will go off as favourites in this one, even though they are out on the road. Their scoring power will be expected to get them over the line. Atletico Madrid are a tough defensive side to take on, and they have remained unbeaten so far this season as well. But they have only scored around half of the goals that Barcelona have.
Atletico Madrid v Barcelona Betting Tips
What a cracker of a game coming up from the Spanish top flight on Saturday and this, not a game to be missed. Atletico have gone about their business this season in their usual manner, being a very hard side to break down. They have conceded just the four goals this season and on home soil from their two games, they haven’t shipped one yet. Atletico have already played a couple of big games this season, as they played out a 0-0 draw with Valencia back in early September and recently produced a good 2-0 home win over Sevilla. So they have only played the two home games and have won both of them to nil. Over 2.5 goals at bet365 for this big clash is a price of 5/6 though and you are looking at a hefty price of 15/4 on Atletico to win to nil. They don’t have a history of clean sheets against Barcelona.
Atletico carries a good scoring threat full of talent and surprisingly Antoine Griezmann isn’t their top scorer so far this season. He has two league goals but Yannick Carrasco and Angel Correa both have three each and they are 2/1 anytime goalscorer options for this one, with Griezmann up at 5/4. This season Atletico have netted 12 goals in their seven league games and that pales in comparison to the 23 that the Catalans have netted. Both teams to score at bet365 is a price of 3/4 and that is worth a flutter because both teams have scored in seven of the last eight meetings across all competitions. Atletico suffered a 2-1 loss in this corresponding fixture last season after a 1-1 draw at the Nou Camp. The 1-1 draw is at 11/2 in the anytime goalscorer market with a Barcelona 2-1 win at 17/2.
There were four meetings between Atletico and Barcelona last season and it was Barcelona who were on top with two wins and two draws. Both draws were a 1-1 scoreline and both wins for Barca were by a 2-1 scoreline so there are some good trends to consider there. Actually, Barcelona’s last five wins over Atletico Madrid in all competitions have been by a 2-1 scoreline. In the last eight meetings between these two in the last two season, Barcelona have picked up a strong W5 D3 record so are bossing the head to head form and they will have plenty of backing in this away game. The Catalans have won all seven of their league games this season, averaging over three goals per game and having picked up five cleans sheets along the way, conceding a total of two goals only this season. Barcelona to win to nil at bet365 is a 7/2 punt.
So you have to talk about Lionel Messi. He fired off a hat trick to give Argentina a necessary victory in Quito against Ecuador in midweek, a win that locked in a World Cup place for the Albiceleste after such a poor qualification campaign. Messi has been in some stunning form this season he really has, having netted eleven goals in seven league appearances. He already has two hat tricks in the league this season and two other braces across the term as well. Remember that Atletico have only scored twelve as a club this season. Messi is the 10/3 first goalscorer favourite at bet365 and they have Luis Suarez back fit as well now and he is a 7/5 anytime goalscorer option. Barcelona have actually only been leading once at half time on the road this season and were behind at the break against Getafe in mid-September before turning things around in the second half.
Atletico Madrid v Barcelona Betting Odds
Barcelona 8/5, Atletico Madrid 7/4, Draw 9/4
Atletico Madrid v Barcelona Predictions
Barcelona to win: This is not going to be an easy game for either of them, but Barcelona should have the edge. They have averaged over three goals per game this season and that should be enough to see off Atletico who failed to break Leganes before the international break.
