On Monday 29th November the two
biggest sides in Spain go head-to-head in a match up lovingly called ‘El
Clasico’. Barcelona and Real Madrid are fierce rivals but the bookies have made
the home team favourites. SBR brings you the betting picks, predictions and live in article odds. Buena Suerte!
The amount of hyperbole that surrounds some
football matches often borders on the ludicrous but every now and again along
comes a game that lives up to its billing. ‘El Clasico’, the match played out
between Spanish rivals Barcelona and Real Madrid is one of those games where a
global football audience will clamour for a position in front of the
television.
The hype is for good reason too; so much
history, both politically and football wise, is involved when these teams meet
with Barcelona representing the Catalonia region of Spain and Real the Castile
region, with Barcelona representing ‘mes que un club’ and the freedom of the
region and Real Madrid representing, at least in the eyes of Catalans
everywhere, the oppressive centralism of Franco’s regime.
This soccer betting season, the fixture means more than
ever with both teams separated by just one single point in La Liga with Madrid
sitting on top with 32 points. Real Madrid have been revitalised under the
self-proclaimed ‘Special One’, Jose Mourinho, and are finally looking like the
real deal. Barcelona, under the guidance of Pep Guardiola still look a real
force too and have the team to build on last year’s victory in the league.
Madrid have not lost a game so far which is
mightily impressive while Barcelona have only lost once; a shock 0-2 defeat at
home to newly-promoted Hercules. That wobble apart though, Barcelona have
easily looked the match of Madrid and on Monday we will hopefully be able to
witness something special as the unstoppable force comes up against the
unmovable power.
The two obvious key match-ups to look out
for are Pep Guardiola going up against the ego of Mourinho in a battle of two
tactically astute minds and, of course, the battle of the world’s two best
players – Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.
While the first battle will be fascinating
to keep an eye on, the battle to focus on will be the two players as they
showcase their skills to the world. Ronaldo has 14 goals to date, with 4 of
those being from the penalty spot and leads the league scoring charts, while
Messi has 13, although with no penalties to aid him, and sits in 2nd
place. Both these players also top the table of assists with 5 a piece.
To suggest that the game revolves around
these two is a little unfair though as there is a wealth of world-class players
on show; Iniesta, Xavi, Ozil, Alonso, Higuain and Villa to name but a few.
The stakes are massive. A Barcelona win
puts them back on top of the league and will give them the bragging rights
until the reverse fixture next year, while a Madrid win would see them go 4
points clear and massive confidence for the rest of the season.
The sportsbooks are cautious too. They make
Barcelona favourites, most likely due to the home advantage but they are
nowhere near as short a price as they usually would be at home with the 11/10 offered at William Hill the best
price.
Real Madrid are priced up well and there is
a little value around the 13/5 at
Victor Chandler. The draw, however, seems to be the result the bookies fear as
the odds are only at 12/5 with Bodog
where a draw in any other game would be a much higher price.
Mourinho has been known to run a
well-drilled unit and keep things tight and with the stakes so high, you can
expect a cagey opening encounter so the draw at half time and Barcelona win at
full time appeals greatly. This is priced up at 5/1 with William Hill.
Although a short price at 8/15 with Paddy Power, the ‘both teams
to score’ bet could be just like buying money considering the attacking players
on show and it wouldn’t surprise me to see a lot of goals over the course of 90
minutes, despite a potential cagey start so the 13/8 at Ladbrokes for there to be over 3.5 goals could be a great
bet too.
Messi will be keen to get back on top of
the scoring charts and what better stage is there to do it on than against the
guy you are trying to beat. At Evens to score at anytime with Victor Chandler,
I think this is a great bet.
All I know is that I am so excited to see
this game and hopefully it lives up to its El Clasico billing.
Predictions:
Barcelona win at 11/10 with William Hill
Both teams to score at 8/15 with Paddy Power
Messi to score at anytime at Evens with
Victor Chandler