Barcelona vs Real Sociedad
All roads lead to Catalonia on Sunday when Barcelona entertains Real Sociedad in a mouthwatering La Liga opener at the Camp Nou.
The Blaugrana are beginning life without their talisman and they must find a way to overcome Real Madrid and champions Atletico to avoid fears of a prolonged period of mourning at the Camp Nou.
Could this be a new dawn for Ronald Koeman’s side? Well, they have a chance to prove they can cope when they open their account against one of the best sides in La Liga – the Basque country’s finest in Real Sociedad.
It promises to be a dramatic clash and the eyes of the football world will be watching.
Talking Points
How can Barca thrive without their main man?
The biggest La Liga 2021 news of all, well, the biggest La Liga news of the last decade was the eventual departure of Barcelona’s best ever player in Lionel Messi.
The Argentine genius was allowed to leave the Camp Nou to help the club balance the books, but he has just signed for Paris Saint-Germain, casting doubt over the efficacy of Europe’s Financial Fair Play rules.
Having been favourites in the early pre-season La Liga 2021 betting odds, the Blaugrana have drifted out to 3.40, leaving Real Madrid as a clear frontrunner at 2.05 and Atletico Madrid is a good bet to retain the title at odds of 3.80.
Head coach Koeman is under pressure to deliver and he needs to look elsewhere for his goals.
New signing Memphis Depay could become the 20th Dutchman to feature for Barca in La Liga if he makes a start. Only one Dutch player managed to score on his debut for the club, and that was the great Johan Cruyff when he scored twice against Granada back in 1973.
Fellow new arrival Sergio Aguero is injured so he will miss the first few weeks, and so it remains to be seen whether Antoine Griezmann can be the player to fill the great man’s shoes or at least soften the blow of his departure.
The France striker is yet to reach the heights of his career at Atletico Madrid since joining Barca. But last season, he began to look like the player we know he can be – a fast thinking, quick-footed striker with a killer pass and a lethal finish.
Maybe he can step up to be the main striker now that he is no longer in the shadow of Messi.
Young sensations Pedri and Ansu Fati have another season under their belts and, if all the stars align, this could still be a great season for the Blaugrana.
Alguacil’s mission for Real Sociedad
La Real are sixth favourites to win La Liga at odds of 51.00 and the Basque team is widely expected to challenge for a European spot again, but is a top four finish and a Champions League place a possibility?
Well, La Real started last season like a house on fire but they tailed off in the second half of the campaign, eventually finishing fifth in the wake of Sevilla, Barca, and the two Madrid giants.
An improvement by just one place would represent a big achievement for Sociedad and that is their manager’s mission. But first, he’s going to have to overcome a hurdle he has so far found insurmountable.
Head coach Imanol Alguacil has managed six games against Barcelona, without winning and drawing just once. Only Sevilla can match that record against the Sociedad boss.
So his side will start as underdogs, but Alguacil has the players to hurt Barcelona with 24- year-old Spain striker Mikel Oyarzabal becoming one of the most sought after forwards in European football and the experienced David Silva adds a touch of world class to the team.
And twin strikers Willian Jose and Alexander Isak, who scored 17 goals in 34 La Liga appearances last term, certainly have the firepower to test the Barca defence.
History
Barcelona have had much the better of the head-to-head meetings, winning 36 of their 55 encounters with Real Sociedad in all competitions since 1993, drawing 11, and losing just eight times.
The last time the two teams clashed was on matchday 28 of the 2020/21 season and Barcelona handed out a 6-1 thumping to Sociedad.
Antoine Griezmann opened the scoring, while Sergino Dest and Lionel Messi scored a brace each and Ousmane Dembele added a sixth.
In terms of recent form, Barca have had a good pre-season, winning five from six warm-up games including a 3-0 victory over Juventus last week.
Sociedad have won four from six but lost two of the last three, including a 1-3 reversal to Osasuna last weekend.
Betting Tip
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Barcelona vs Real Sociedad | First Half 1X2 Barcelona @ 2.36 |
| August 16 2:00 (GMT+8) |
At SBOTOP odds of 1.73 to win, this match the Blaugrana is clear favourite to win with the draw at 3.59 and a Sociedad victory the least likely outcome at 4.19.
We recently said that Barcelona was the team to beat again this season, but that was before the departure of Messi and now they must kick on.
They have lost just one opening La Liga game at home to Espanyol in 1939 and have won their last nine, so I expect a fast start from the Catalans on Sunday.
A SHORT EXPLANATION ON HOW OUR ( ) BETS ARE WORTH: |
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|---|---|---|---|
 = €20 (Highly confident) |
 = €10 (CONFIDENT) |
= €5 (SOMEWHAT CONFIDENT) |
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Disclaimer: Odds are correct at time of publish.
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