La Liga tips: Can Valencia derail Barcelona again?

We’ve got another tasty round of La Liga fixtures this week, with plenty at stake in the title race and the push for European spots.

Valencia are the next side in Barcelona’s path. Can they put a dent in the champions’ title defence? We start our preview of the action at Camp Nou…

Barcelona v Valencia (Saturday – 5:30pm)

Valencia held Barcelona to a draw when they met back in October. But our traders have the hosts at 2/7 to get the points.

The champions have been on a roll in league action lately. They’ve been leading at half-time and full-time in their previous eight La Liga fixtures. They’re 20/23 to keep up their hot streak.

Sevilla barely got close to Lionel Messi in their 6-1 defeat to Barca in midweek. Will Los Che do any better? Messi is 6/4 to score two or more.

Luis Suarez has also netted the last three times Valencia have come to Camp Nou. The striker is 7/10 to get on the scoresheet again.

Real Sociedad v Athletic Bilbao (Saturday – 3:15pm)

With only a point separating the two sides, they’ll both be looking to boost their European hopes with a Basque derby win.

Athletic have only lost one of their last 10 outings. But they’ve only won one away league game this term. The draw is going for 21/10.

And with four goals in each of the last two clashes between these sides, it’s 13/4 that this one sees Over 3.5 Goals.

Mikel Oyarzabal has three goals in the last two Basque derbies. There’s 12/5 about another goal here for the Sociedad winger.

Inaki Williams could be the one to watch for the visitors. He’s 9/5 to net in this one.

Real Betis v Atletico Madrid (Sunday – 3:15pm)

Atletico will be looking to keep the pressure on Barcelona this weekend. And they’ll be glad to see the sight of Betis. They’re on a 14-game unbeaten run against the Seville club. We’ve got Atleti as 21/20 favourites.

Don’t expect too many goals though. Diego Simeone’s side are 5/1 to seal a third 1-0 win over Betis since December 2017.

Antoine Griezmann has bagged eight goals in his last eight appearances. The World Cup winner is 7/2 favourite to open the scoring, with Alvaro Morata 2/1 to notch on his Atleti debut.

Real Madrid v Alaves (Sunday – 7:45pm)

Real Madrid go into this one in third, seven points above fifth-placed Alaves. They’re 1/4 favourites, although a 12/1 Alaves win would haul the visitors right into the top-four race.

The odds suggest it’s a long shot, but Alaves did beat the Champions League holders in October. They’re 16/5 to get something in the Double Chance market.

Karim Benzema heads the goalscorer markets at 3/1 to score first or 5/6 anytime, with Gareth Bale rated 19/20 to get a goal.

But Manu Garcia got the winner last time these sides met. The Alaves midfielder is 12/1 to net at the Bernabeu too.

Click here for the latest La Liga odds.

All Odds and Markets correct as of date of publication