La Liga Predictions, Picks and Betting Preview August 11-13

Betting Preview for La Liga Matches August 11-13

WagerTalk La Liga handicapper Kevin Dolan presents his August 11-13 La Liga predictions and betting preview around key La Liga matches including Sevilla vs Valencia and Getafe vs Barcelona. Which teams is he looking to pick up points and which will have goal scoring? Read his La Liga betting tips now!

Sevilla vs Valencia | Friday August 11 | 4:00pm ET

Sevilla -110 | Valencia +330 | Draw +245

It was a remarkable fall from grace for Sevilla last season which saw them go from a top-four side in the league across numerous seasons, to sitting firmly in the relegation zone at the start of 2023 before a late revival led them to safety.

Both Julen Lopetegui and Jorge Sampaoli were unable to do that however before the Rojiblancos struck gold at the third time of asking by bringing in current manager Jose Luis Mendilibar.

He guided Sevilla not only to the best away record in the league from April 1st onwards, but also in claiming yet another Europa League crown against Roma as well in what was an incredibly successful two month spell for the incoming Spanish coach.

Therefore, optimism is high in Sevilla that they can leave their former troubles behind and get back to the top of the table ahead of this season, which starts with a solid performance at home against Valencia on Friday.

Sevilla weren’t the only ones who experienced major difficulties last season, with Valencia suffering their worst LaLiga campaign of the 21st century, both in terms of total points gained and overall position in the league.

Similar to Mendilibar, Valencia coach Ruben Baraja was brought in to stem the tide after Valencia sat in the relegation zone at the mid-point of February.

Baraja was able to guide his club to sixteen points across their final twelve games, which included an impressive 1-0 victory over Real Madrid, which was enough to not only save the club, but also ensure he stays on at the helm ahead of this season as well.

Valencia have come away with a result in two of their last three matches against Sevilla in LaLiga competition, including their last visit here to the Estadio Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan in October as well.

That said, we’re expecting Sevilla to hit the ground running this season and get the victory against a Valencia side who have lost some depth in the midfield area over the summer.

Prediction: Sevilla ML (-110)

Athletic Bilbao vs Real Madrid | Saturday, August 12 | 3:30pm ET

Athletic Bilbao +240| Real Madrid +110 | Draw +255

Real Madrid saw their #2 all-time record goalscorer Karim Benzema join their #1 all-time record goalscorer Cristiano Ronaldo over in Saudi Arabia this summer as the Spanish giants face their first full season without their talisman forward since 2009.

Both Rodrygo and Vinicius Junior will look to pick up the slack left by the departure of Madrid’s top goalscorer last season, but it will be no easy task as both players combined for just 19 goals last season, well short of the 24 Benzema was able to net.

That said, Benzema’s departure isn’t all doom and gloom for Los Blancos who welcomed in Borussia Dortmund’s Jude Bellingham over the summer, a signing that should give them a massive presence in the middle of the field, allowing Rodrygo and Vinicius Junior to do their most damage.

Athletic Bilbao had a respectable LaLiga campaign last year, finishing 8th in the league overall but did tail off somewhat as the season wore on, ranking as the 13th best team in the league from January 1st onwards.

The Williams brothers will no doubt be key once again for the Basque club, but manager Ernesto Valverde will likely want to adopt a more subdued approach ahead of this game and not look to take on a still dangerous Real Madrid side in a direct confrontation this weekend.

Overall, we see this game being incredibly competitive on Saturday and favor Real Madrid to come out on top by the slimmest of margins in this one.

Five of Real Madrid’s last six wins in this venue all came by just one goal and we see more of the same this weekend.

Prediction: Real Madrid To Win By 1 Goal (+245)

Getafe vs Barcelona | Sunday August 13 | 3:30pm ET

Getafe +520 | Barcelona -175 | Draw +300

Last season’s league champions Barcelona travel to struggling Getafe on Sunday, a team who narrowly avoided relegation last year but who were able to grind out a semi-impressive four-game unbeaten run to close out the season, ensuring their survival in LaLiga in the process.

However, Getafe are likely to struggle once again this year as they added very little to their squad over the summer transfer window and face a herculean hurdle in trying to overcome Barcelona this weekend in their opening game of the season at home.

Barcelona netted a coup over the summer by bringing in former Manchester City player and Champions League winner Ilkay Gundogan on a free transfer.

Gundogan, who was arguably City’s standout performer at the backend of last season, netting four goals and one assist across May in the Premier League alone, will bring a huge presence to that midfield area for Barcelona and ensure they remain as one of the favorites to repeat their success of last season.

Getafe meanwhile offers very little threat going forward, netting just 34 goals total last season and ranking dead last in the league in terms of offensive xG as well.

That inept attack faces one of the best defenses in the whole of Europe on Sunday, with Barcelona allowing just 20 goals last season (Real Madrid allowed almost double that at 36 for comparison), and had by far the best defensive xGA record out of any team in the league also.

Barcelona to win outright, Barcelona to win to nil, and the Under 2.5 goals all look like solid plays on Sunday, but for simplicity’s sake, we’ll stick with the straight Under for this one.

Prediction: Under 2.5 (-125)