Prediction, Odds & Betting Tips for Barcelona vs. Mallorca at La Liga
Prediction, Odds & Betting Tips for Barcelona vs. Mallorca at La Liga
Blaugrana had the perfect opportunity to get back in the title race, with Real and Giron failing to win this weekend, but Xavi’s unit couldn’t beat Athletic in Bilbao. Their draw wasn’t a surprise, but it definitely hurt because of the mentioned results. On the other side, Mallorca made one unexpected result, beating the second-place Girona and harming their title prospects. Will they manage to deliver one more sensation?
Barcelona
Blaugrana is without a loss for the past seven meetings, though having three ties during this stretch, one in the Champions League against Napoli, 1-1 on the road, and two in the La Liga, them being the reasons why Real has eight points more in the standings.
Xavi’s unit has back-to-back clean sheets, which is an improvement, knowing that prior to these two events, they’ve allowed a goal in nine of ten appearances. This defense is nothing like last year’s when this team won the title, shutting down rivals’ offenses.
Barca isn’t ruthless at home this year as they were last, with them winning 10 of 14 matches with one tie and three defeats, scoring 32 and allowing 19 goals, which is more than one per game.
Mallorca
Mallorca is on the rise right now, not losing the past three contests, beating a title contender last weekend, and reaching the Copa del Rey finals for the first time since 2003 when they won this trophy, the only one in their history.
After eliminating Real Sociedad on the road, Mallorca came back home to play against Girona. After tough 90 minutes of play, the hosts triumphed 1-0 in a game that saw solid chances on both ends of the field.
This team plays low-efficient games when on the road, and seven of the recent ten have seen fewer than three goals. Javier Aguirre’s main tactics are to close all the paths to his box, wait for the set piece or a mistake, and kill the pace of the game.
Barcelona: Ter Stegen; Kounde, Araujo, I Martinez, Cancelo; F de Jong, Christensen, Gundogan; Raphinha, Lewandowski, Felix
Mallorca: Rajkovic; Gonzalez, Valjent, Raillo, Copete, Lato; A Sanchez, S Costa, D Rodriguez; Muriqi, Larin
* at the time of writing these lineups were relevant
Mallorca didn’t beat Barca since 2009, and that’s one pretty long stretch. Up to the previous meeting, which was in late September, Barca had 11 straight wins, which suggests they like playing against this rival.
The most recent event, however, ended without winners, 2-2. Mallorca had the lead twice, but each time, Barca came back.
The tradition says everything here. In the last five visits to Barcelona, Mallorca lost all five times with a combined difference of 20-3. So, we don’t expect them to make a sensation again, particularly because Barca needs these points to save some chances for the title.
Our verdict: Barcelona wins