La Liga: April Will be a Big Month For Barcelona

Barcelona vs Real Valladolid

Barcelona are entering the most important stretch of their 2020/21 campaign upon looking at their schedule this April.

After being eliminated by PSG in the Champions League, the Catalan giants can now fully turn their attention to domestic matters as they balance between their ongoing La Liga campaign and their upcoming tiff in the Copa del Rey Finals.

This weekend, Ronald Koeman’s side start the new month at home to host Real Valladolid as they try to grab three more valuable points.

These two sides couldn’t be any different especially given their places at the Spanish top-flight standings. Barcelona are at second with 62 points while Real Valladolid are nearing the bottom, placing 16^th with only 27 markers.

Needless to say that this is considered a must-win for both sides given their respective objectives.

A victory here for Barcelona means that they’ll cut into Atletico Madrid’s four-point cushion – especially if they’ll lost versus Sevilla on Sunday. Meanwhile, Real Valladolid can move closer to safety if they’ll secure a positive result.

Talking Points

It’s go time for Barcelona

Ronald Koeman and Barcelona are in good form as they have won their last five La Liga matches — Ronald Koeman shouts out instructions during Barcelona’s match against PSG

Barcelona’s elimination in the Champions League must have lit a fire under the bellies of their players as they were running hot in form before the international break.

The Blaugrana took the front page of the La Liga 2021 news when they demolished Huesca and Real Sociedad both in high-scoring fashion, recording an aggregate tally of 10-2.

Lionel Messi may have been given his due since he has notched 12 goals six assists during their unbeaten streak, but he isn’t doing it all alone.

Antoine Griezmann, Ousmane Dembele, and Sergino Dest have shown better chemistry on the field and they are all expected to feature heavily in their upcoming games.

Barcelona are peaking at the right time which is why they should keep their foot on the gas pedal.

After this game, Barcelona and Real Madrid add another chapter to their storied El Clasico rivalry and then they have business to settle against Athletic Bilbao in the Copa del Rey Finals.

Furthermore, Ronald Koeman has the option to save some of his key players for the bigger games – namely Gerard Pique, Sergi Roberto, and Frenkie de Jong. I wouldn’t be surprised if those three sit this one out on Monday.

Real Valladolid to miss several players

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Premier League

The odds are stacked against the Pucelanos given that they are going to be severely undermanned.

Spanish outlets confirmed that Real Valladolid have seven players and three coaches positive for COVID-19 last week, and the team has yet to train ever since.

First choice goalkeeper Roberto Jimenez is one of the players confirmed to have contracted the coronavirus while the other six players are yet to be revealed.

Prior to the outbreak, Valladolid are undefeated in four straight league games with three draws and a victory – which is a sign of steady improvement.

Sergio’s men, in fact, almost scored one of the biggest upsets of the season against Sevilla. But the Palanganas were bailed out by Bono’s equaliser during the 94^th minute.

Valladolid are hopeful that they can put up a valiant effort against Barcelona on Monday. And if they can grab a point in this match, that should be considered as a huge win for them.

History

Recent form and history suggest that this fixture has “lopsided win” written all over in favour of the Catalan giants.

In their last six encounters, Barcelona have won five times, whereas Real Valladolid have only won once.

Valladolid’s last win dates back to 2014 when they defeated Barcelona 1-0 at the Jose Zorilla Stadium.

Barcelona have scored at least four goals in four of their last six meetings at Camp Nou including a 5-1 win last term. They also won their earlier fixture this season with a tally of 3-0.

Betting Tip

	Barcelona vs Real Valladolid	Barcelona Asian Handicap -2.25 @ 1.81
	April 6, 03:00 (GMT+8)

It’s almost certain that the home side will remain undefeated this year after Monday night, as per the La Liga 2021 odds here at SBOTOP.

Barcelona are priced at 1.14 to win, while Real Valladolid are the heavy underdogs at 12.50 and a draw is at 9.00 in the 1×2 market.

This game would’ve been a closer call if Real Valladolid have a complete roster at hand as they have the quality players who are capable of giving the Blaugrana problems.

But whether Valladolid are complete or not, either way, Barcelona should have no problems putting them away as long as they stick to their gameplan.