After being outclassed in El Clasico, Barcelona will be keen to bounce back as they welcome Villarreal to camp Nou on Thursday night in La Liga.
Barcelona are coming off a 3-1 defeat to Real Madrid in El Clasico last Sunday. They were no match for the champions with Ferran Torres’ second half effort proving to be a mere consolation.
The result extends a difficult couple of weeks for Barcelona, with manager Xavi showing he may not be ready for the truly elite level yet. This rough patch has seen the Catalans claim just one win from their last four matches across all competitions while they are now also on the verge of dropping to the Europa League.
However, it is not all doom and gloom for Barcelona, they are unbeaten across all competitions at home this season and have won their last three La Liga matches in front of their fans without conceding a goal.
Villarreal travel to Barcelona off the back of a 2-0 victory over Osasuna in a Monday night La Liga fixture. They proved to be too strong for the visitors and secured the win thanks to a goal in each half from Arnaut Danjuma.
That was the first win in four La Liga matches for Villarreal, who have found things difficult on the domestic scene in recent weeks. Unai Emery’s men are now up to seventh on the table, just four points off the top four.
One thing that has hampered Villarreal this season is a poor record on their travels. They are winless in their last four La Liga matches on the road, failing to score a single goal in that run.
How the bookies view it
Barcelona are considered overwhelming favourites among the bookies with a home win priced at 11/21 by SBK. A victory for Villarreal is valued at 5/1 by William Hill while a draw is set at odds of 7/2 by bet365.
Recent head to head
Barcelona often come out on top in this fixture and have won five of the last six matches against Villarreal. However, they suffered a 2-0 defeat in the last meeting between both sides at Camp Nou.
Players to watch
Robert Lewandowski has a reputation for going missing in big games and was kept quiet during El Clasico. However, he remains the biggest attacking threat for Barcelona and with nine goals in as many La Liga matches this season, can be backed at 8/11 with bet365 to find the net on Thursday.
Despite conceding three goals in El Clasico, Barcelona still boast one of the best defences in La Liga and have kept clean sheets in their last four home matches. Eric Garcia and Jules Kounde should continue in central defence and can lead the Catalans to another clean sheet at 13/8 with Coral.
Anything else catch the eye?
Barcelona have been solid at the back this season and with Villarreal struggling for goals on their travels, BTTS NO can be considered at 13/10 with BetVictor. The hosts have won to nil in their last three La Liga home matches and a repeat could also be on the cards at 19/10 with BetVictor.
The Catalans are also expected to be comfortable on Thursday and could be tipped in the -1 handicap market at 13/10 with Paddy Power.
This La Liga match between Barcelona and Villarreal will be played on Oct 20, 2022 and kick off at 20:00. Check below for our tipsters best Barcelona vs Villarreal prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
