La Liga Predictions, Picks and Best Bets February 16-18

Predictions and Picks for La Liga Matches February 16-18

WagerTalk La Liga handicapper Kevin Dolan presents his February 16-18 La Liga predictions and betting preview around key La Liga matches including Getafe at Villarreal and Barcelona at Celta Vigo. Which teams is he looking to pick up points and which will have goal scoring? Read his La Liga betting tips now!

Getafe at Villarreal | Friday February 16 | 3:00pm ET

Getafe +255 | Villarreal +105 | Draw +255

Two teams stuck in midtable clash on Friday night over at the Estadio de la Ceramica in Villarreal as the Yellow Submarine host Getafe in a game that’s expected to be competitive over in Castellon.

Villarreal own the recent bragging rights in this series with Getafe not having registered a single victory against Villarreal across any competition in well over five years, a run of results they’ll look to overturn this Friday.

However, that recent series history for Villarreal flies in the face of their domestic struggles this season, registering just three wins at home all season long, along with allowing a whopping 22 goals inside their home stadium this year also, the worst defensive record in the entire league.

For Getafe, they’ll look to build on an away record that has seen them grind out results on the road in 58.3% of all their games this year.

However, aggression has tended to cost Getafe in games more often than not this season, picking up a combined eight yellow cards across each of their last two road starts, and sitting with the league’s highest number of booking points this season as well.

This is a tough game to predict on Friday as while Villarreal has won four straight in this venue against Getafe over the last few seasons, the Azulones have been a tough out for teams away from home this year, and we wouldn’t put it past them picking up at least another point in this one.

La Liga Prediction: Draw (+255)

Barcelona at Celta Vigo | Saturday February 17 | 12:30pm ET

Barcelona -115 | Celta Vigo +295 | Draw +280

One of the top teams in the league faces one of the bottom ones on Saturday as 3rd-place Barcelona travel to the Estadio de Balaidos in Vigo to take on 17th-place Celta Vigo this weekend.

With a current ten-point gap separating themselves from league leaders Real Madrid in 1st, reclaiming the LaLiga title that they won last year looks like a tall order for Barcelona right now, but that hasn’t stopped them from playing extremely well of late, especially away from home, where only the aforementioned Real Madrid have generated more total points per game across their last six road starts than Barcelona have.

In terms of Celta Vigo, their home form has been absolutely dire this season, generating just two wins all season, along with having the lowest number of goals scored also.

However, with those two wins coming in just their last four games, it’s fair to say the Sky Blues have turned somewhat of a corner in 2024, giving both Real Sociedad and Girona two really tough tests in those other two losses inside this venue also.

With Barcelona in action just a few days later in the Champions League, facing a tough trip over to Italy to take on defending Serie A champions Napoli, the Catalan giants may well take their eyes off the ball here against a resurgent Celta Vigo side who may do enough to snatch a point in this one.

La Liga Prediction: Draw (+280)

Almeria at Granada | Sunday February 11 | 10:15am ET

Almeria +240 | Granada +115 | Draw +245

The bottom two teams in LaLiga face each other on Sunday in what is a must-win game for either side seeing as there’s only 37% of the season remaining, leaving so little opportunity left in order to try and escape the drop zone and not succumb to a full season down in the Segunda Division for next year.

For Almeria especially, who sit a full 13 points adrift of safety right now, they simply won’t get a better chance to change their ailing fortunes this weekend than facing a Granada team that has gone winless across each of their last five LaLiga games.

However, Almeria remains the only team in the league yet to win a game all season, so the idea of them suddenly turning it on here and claiming all three points against a team in Granada who, while struggling, have nevertheless gone unbeaten across four of their last six starts at home, still looks like a reasonably remote possibility.

That said, the reverse fixture between these two back in October was an absolute barnburner, with Luis Suarez netting a first-half hat-trick for the hosts, only for Granada, with the help of some late penalties, to peg them back with three goals in the second-half of that game to see it end all square at 3-3.

That’s the closest Almeria have come to a win all season, and with eleven straight league defeats on the road heading into Sunday’s game, it’s difficult to make a case for Almeria here given their struggles away from home this season.

Granada won both of the recent league meetings between these two sides at this venue, and we’re banking on them making it a third straight on Sunday against an Almeria side that looks destined for life in LaLiga 2 next season.

La Liga Prediction: Granada ML (+115)