I suppose you could refer to Wednesday’s matchup between FC Barcelona and Espanyol as a derby of sorts, as Barcelona’s two teams in La Liga will square off at the Camp Nou. Espanyol has a storied history, dating back to its founding in 1900, and they won the Copa del Rey as recently as 2006. However, the club has fallen on hard times in recent years and is definitely at risk of relegation, sitting dead last in La Liga with 24 points, 11 points back of Eibar, who at 17th place is the last team clear of the risk of going down to the second division of Spanish soccer next season. They will take on an FC Barcelona team that finds itself four points back of Real Madrid for first place in La Liga after turning some winnable matches into draws in recent play. The odds show that Barcelona is the heavy favorite, but can they take the three points that they need to keep pace with Real? Don’t miss our sports betting insights on this match. Let’s see how the LaLiga Odds will be for the Barcelona vs Espanyol.
La Liga: FC Barcelona vs RCD Espanyol de Barcelona (July 8)
- When: Wednesday, July 8, 2020, 4:00 pm ET
- Where: Camp Nou, Barcelona
- TV: beIN SPORTS
- Radio: None
- Live Stream: fuboTV
- LaLiga Odds: FC Barcelona 1.18 / Draw 9.10 / Espanyol 26.00
Why should you bet on Espanyol?
Espanyol hosted Leganes on Sunday, at that point just one point back of Leganes in the La Liga standings. However, Espanyol could get nothing done against the 19th-place team in the standings and now is four points back of Leganes, firmly ensconced in 20th place. The first half ended without any scoring, but then Jonathan Silva tallied for Leganes in the 53rd minute. Espanyol could not maintain their composure as their offensive forays failed, and Jonathan Calleri was shown a red card in the 88th minute, which will rule him out of the match with Barcelona.
Espanyol possessed for 62 percent of the match but spent the vast majority of that time passing the ball around to one another, as they launched only two shots for the match, none on target. Leganes was only able to get three shots off, but two were on target. The teams combined for 24 fouls and six yellow cards (three per side). Espanyol was not able to mount anything close to offensive pressure, so it is difficult to see them doing much of anything against their crosstown rivals.
Why should you put your money on Barcelona?
Barcelona has found their offense — but have they found it in time? They needed just three minutes to score in their game on Sunday against Villarreal, as Pau Torres got the early tally. Gerard Moreno brought Villarreal level 11 minutes later, but then the floodgates opened. Luis Suarez scored in the 20th minute, and then Antoine Griezmann scored just before halftime. Ansu Fati put the icing on the cake in the 87th minute to salt away the 4-1 win.
Barcelona held the ball for 65 percent of the match, outshooting Villarreal, 13-4 (11-2 on target). The match was fairly clean, with 22 combined fouls and just one yellow card (shown to Villarreal). Barcelona forced six corners to just a pair for the hosts, skating to the win after the early scare that came from Moreno’s equalizer. If you like Barcelona here, you see that offense clicking once again against another bottom-feeder in La Liga.
Barcelona vs Espanyol Final Score Prediction
Barcelona is now in the position of having to chase Real Madrid and wait for them to have a hiccup down the stretch. Such a hiccup, at least in the form of a draw, is possible, but Real Madrid has a cakewalk down the stretch, facing Alaves, Granada, Villarreal and Leganes. Barcelona has no room for error and must win out — beginning with Espanyol. I predict a final score of Barcelona 3, Espanyol 0.
