Barcelona will be looking to strengthen their lead at the top of La Liga as they welcome struggling Valencia to Camp Nou. The Catalans remain the team to beat in Spain and should be too strong for Valencia, who are battling near the bottom of the table.
Barcelona ended a recent run of poor results by beating Real Madrid and claiming a first leg advantage in the Copa Del Rey semi-final. Having crashed out of the Europa League and lost to Almeria in their previous, an own goal from Eder Militao gave them a 1-0 victory on Thursday.
Despite their recent struggles, Barcelona continue to set the pace at the top of La Liga, sitting seven points clear of Real Madrid. The surprise 1-0 defeat to Almeria was their first in 14 La Liga matches, claiming seven wins in that run.
Having been on the road in their last three matches, Barcelona return to Camp Nou which has not tasted defeat all season. They have won nine of their last 10 home matches, keeping clean sheets in all nine wins.
While Barcelona are looking to strengthen their lead at the top, Valencia have a different battle on their hands. They are currently in the relegation zone, one point from safety and their task for the rest of the season will be to ease away from trouble.
Valencia’s survival quest appears to have started on a good note as they claimed a 1-0 victory over Real Sociedad in their previous La Liga fixture. That result ended a run of six straight defeats across all competitions and they will be keen to use it as a springboard for a turnaround.
However, the problem for Valencia is that their record on the road does not inspire much confidence. Ruben Baraja’s men have lost their last five away matches in La Liga, failing to score in the last four fixtures in that run.
How the bookies view it
The bookies have installed Barcelona as overwhelming favourites with a home win priced at 4/9 with William Hill. An unlikely victory for Valencia is valued at 6/1 by Paddy Power while a draw is set at odds of 15/4 by bet365.
Head to head
Barcelona often come out on top against Valencia and have won the last four meetings. The Catalans claimed a 1-0 victory in the reverse fixture back in October with Robert Lewandowski getting the goal.
Players to watch
Barcelona’s solid home form has been driven by a sturdy defence which has kept clean sheets in nine of their last 10 matches at Camp Nou. Centre-back Andreas Christensen was rested at Real Madrid on Thursday and could return to guide the hosts to another clean sheet at 11/10 with bet365.
With Robert Lewandowski rated doubtful for Sunday’s clash, Raphinha could be worth keeping an eye on for Barcelona. The forward has shown flashes since the turn of the year with important goals against the likes of Sevilla and Real Betis, and could be backed to find the net at 2/1 with bet365.
Anything else catch the eye?
Barcelona have won to nil in nine of their last 10 home matches and could be set for a similar result on Sunday at 7/5 with BetVictor. A few of those wins have been one-sided, which means a -1 handicap could also be considered 13/10 with BoyleSports.
The Catalan scored goals in both halves in two of the last three meetings with Valencia and Sunday’s clash could be tipped to follow a similar pattern at 13/10 with BoyleSports.
This La Liga match between Barcelona and Valencia will be played on Mar 5, 2023 and kick off at 15:15. Check below for our tipsters best Barcelona vs Valencia prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
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