Unbeaten La Liga table-toppers Barcelona look to continue their pursuit of another Spanish league title as they travel to mid-table Leganes. Leganes are playing in the top flight of Spanish football for just the second season and aren’t doing too badly. They sit in ninth position in the table, two points off the top six. That position may be slightly flattering considering they have only managed to score nine goals in eleven games. Only the bottom four have scored less and their lack of goals could prove to be a problem for them. However, they counteract their lack of attacking quality with superb defensive work.
Spanish La Liga – Estadio Municipal de Butarque, Madrid – Saturday 18th November – 14:15 UK Time
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Draw Best Odd of: 9/2 at PaddyPower |
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Leganes
FC BarcelonaThey have kept seven clean sheets in the league this season, including against Atletico Madrid, and only Atletico and Barcelona have conceded less than the eight Leganes have shipped. Unfortunately, they have lost all four matches in which they have conceded a goal. Their most recent match was a 3-0 defeat at Valencia and that followed a 2-1 loss at Sevilla before that. Recent League Form – LLWWDW.
Barcelona
Barcelona are head and shoulders above everyone else in La Liga this season, and they hold a four point advantage over Valencia in second. They have won ten of their eleven matches, with the only dropped points coming in a 1-1 draw away at Atletico last month. Since that draw, they have won three consecutive league games and conceded just one goal during that run. They have the joint highest goals for in La Liga, equal on 30 with Valencia, and have the best defensive record with just four goals conceded. Recent League Form – WWWDWW.
Head to Head
Last season’s two league matches are the only ever meetings between these sides, with Barcelona winning both. The first, at Leganes in September last year, finished 5-1 but the return fixture was a bit closer. In February this year, Barcelona were a massive favourite as they played host to Leganes but required a 90th minute penalty from Lionel Messi to give them a 2-1 victory.
Betting Odds and Predictions
As expected, Barcelona are a big betting favourite here and we agree with the bookmakers that an away win is the most likely outcome. Sky Bet have the league leaders priced at 3/10 to take maximum points. Leganes are 9 to cause a shock of epic proportions, with the draw at odds of 9/2. The home side have held Atletico Madrid to a draw this season and defend well. So, if they can keep Barcelona’s world-class attack at bay, they may be able to pick up an unlikely draw here. We don’t see it, however, and we believe the likes of Messi and co will exploit any weaknesses they find on the way to a convincing victory.
Barcelona have kept seven clean sheets this season, and have the best defensive record in the league. Add that to the fact Leganes have scored just nine league goals this season and 11/10 for the visitors to win to nil looks extremely tempting. To be honest, it’s probably easier to say punters should back a convincing Barcelona victory with them scoring a few goals than to add every market individually. One bet we will recommend is Lionel Messi to score. The Argentinian has netted twelve league goals this term, including two hat-tricks, and punters will make a profit more often than not by backing him to score.
It’s priced at 8/15 for Messi to score anytime, 2/1 for a brace, and 15/2 he bags his third league hat-trick of the season. Paco Alcacer is another option in the anytime goal scorer market. He netted twice last time out and is priced at decent odds of 6/5 to net in 90 minutes here.
Top Betting Tip
Our top betting tip for this match is Barcelona to win, at odds of 3/10 with Sky Bet.