Spanish La Liga
2008-11-08 - Barcelona vs Valladolid
A Sports Betting Pick by Gooner
Spain Primera Division
Saturday 8th November 2008 - Kickoff 21:00
The Saturday night game in Spain looks like being a home banker.
Barcelona (1st 7-1-1 28:8)
Barcelona ended their 11-game winning run in midweek when they were held 1-1 by Swiss club Basel in the Champions League, and the Catalans will be looking to get back to winning ways here.
The attendance for the midweek games was slightly less than 50,000, making for a half-empty Nou Camp and it's interesting to see that Barcelona manager Pep Guardiola is asking for a better turnout from the fans.
Certainly, Guardiola has turned around Barcelona in the six months that he's been in charge, and I'd expect to see that he gets things right tonight to ensure that the mid-week result does not start a slump.
Team News :
Andres Iniesta tore a muscle in Tuesday's match against Basel and will be out for around two months. Eric Abidal and Gabi Milito also miss out through injury, but Seydou Keita is available again.
Real Valladolid (14th 3-1-5 9:11)
Valladolid's start to the season has been plagued by bad form when playing away from home and with four straight losses on the road so far there is little sign that they can shock at the Nou Camp.
There was a good result last weekend though, when Valladolid beat Sevilla 3-2 at home, but it should be noted that Sevilla had striker Luis Fabiano sent off early in the game.
Team News :
Coach Jose Luis Mendilibar should have a full strength side to choose from on Saturday as 's Leon has recovered from a bout of stomach bug while Jesus Rueda is also back from injury.
Head to Head
Last season was the first time in four years that Valladolid were in the top division - and Barcelona cruised to an easy 4-1 win here.
THE VERDICT
Barcelona are the form team in Spain, facing a side that is notorious for not really performing weell on it's travels.
The price on the home win is not great, so you might want to consider a HT/FT bet or even an asian handicap option.
The Statistics :
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The Pick :
Barcelona 3-0 Valladolid
BEST BETTING TIP :
Two options to choose from :- Take BARCELONA to win for your home banker combos
- Consider HT/FT of BARCA/BARCA at 1.57 at Paddy Power
Gooner’s Statistical Value Bet
Take BARCELONA -1.75 to win by 2 or 3 goals.
