Another weekend, another exciting set of fixtures to look forward to in La Liga as gameweek 30 kicks off on Friday night.
In the previous round, both Barcelona and Real Madrid won their respective matches with much ease, and it seems the race for this season’s league title will go down to the wire.
While the Blaugrana dispatched Leganes 2-0 at home, Los Blancos downed a high-spirited Valencia side by a margin of 3-0 to be just two points and a place behind the league leaders.
In this weekend’s action, the Barcelona will visit Sevilla on Friday night, in one of the marquee games of gameweek 30.
With that said, let’s take a look at all the fixtures due to be played this weekend in La Liga.
Sevilla vs Barcelona (Prediction: 1-3)
The Catalans will face their toughest test since the league’s resumption when they travel to the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan to take on a high-spirited Sevilla side who are currently third on the league table.
Expect an epic encounter between these two teams who have been playing decent football of late. The hosts did drop points last week, as they could only muster a 1-1 draw against Levante. But their home record has been promising so far.
Barcelona, meanwhile, have come out all guns blazing since La Liga resumed, and will be the favourites to pick up all three points in this envounter.
Mallorca vs Leganes (Prediction: 1-1)
In a battle of two relegation-threatened sides, 18th-placed Mallorca will welcome 20th-placed Leganes at Son Moix in a tricky game, as both sides have struggled for consistency this season, which explains their league standings.
Mallorca were defeated by Villarreal lately, as they’ve lost both league games since the break. But the home side will fancy their chances against a struggling Leganes side, who have endured similar fortunes of late.
Athletic Bilbao vs Real Betis (Prediction: 0-0)
On Saturday night, Athletic Bilbao will play hosts to Real Betis at the San Mames in a match that has particular importance for the away side.
Winless in their two games since the league’s restart, Real Betis are currently languishing in 14th place on the table, 11 points above relegation places. Now is not the time to panic, but the visitors need to bag a couple of wins to all but secure their stay in the Spanish top flight.
Bilbao, meanwhile, have drawn both their previous two games and will be hoping to avoid dropping points against a struggling Betis side in their own den.
Granada vs Villarreal (Prediction: 2-2)
A battle of two mid-table teams – Granada will welcome the Yellow Submarine to Los Carmenes in gameweek 30 of La Liga, with both clubs looking to remain in contention for Europa League playoff spots.
While Villarreal are 7th in the standings, the hosts of Friday night’s game are two places down in 9th. This means it’s a must-win game for both of these teams, as the winner will have a clear advantage towards keeping their European dreams alive.
Real Sociedad vs Real Madrid (Prediction: 1-2)
La Real will host Zinedine Zidane’s team at the Reale Arena this week, in a crucial game from both sides’ perspectives.
Sociedad, who were the in-form team prior to the break, are winless in their past two games. Having dumped Real Madrid out of the Copa del Rey earlier this year, the home side know very well how to tackle their Sunday night’s opponents.
Los Blancos, meanwhile, will be hoping to pick up all three points and keep pace with Barcelona, who can possibly extend their lead to five points by the time this match kicks-off.
Espanyol vs Levante (Prediction: 1-1)
Having picked up four points from a possible six since the league’s restart, Espanyol have managed to rise up from the foot of the table, although they are still in 19th place in the standings.
The club from Barcelona will be hoping to pick up as many points as possible against 11th-placed Levante, and try to leapfrog Mallorca into the 18th place on the table. The visitors have drawn both of their previous La Liga matches, and we can expect another drab affair between these two sides.
Atletico Madrid vs Real Valladolid (Prediction: 3-0)
After thrashing Osasuna 0-5 earlier in the week, Atletico Madrid will head into gameweek 30 with plenty of confidence, as they are set to host Real Valladolid at the Wanda Metropolitano.
Diego Simeone’s men rose to fourth on the table after their latest win, and the home side will be expected to register another routine victory over Valladolid, who are 15th on the table, after their draw with Celta Vigo. It could prove to be the most one-sided game of this gameweek.
Getafe vs Eibar (Prediction 2-0)
Getafe stuttered to a 0-0 stalemate against Espanyol lately, but the home side will hope to bounce back to winning ways when they welcome Eibar to the Alfonso Perez Coliseum.
The hosts are fifth on the table and will be favourites against 16th-placed Eibar, who could only salvage a 2-2 draw at home to Athletic Bilbao last week. Expect this game to be another one-way traffic.
Valencia vs Osasuna (Prediction: 2-1)
After a demoralising defeat to Real Madrid, Los Che are set to welcome 13th-placed Osasuna to the Mestalla stadium on Sunday evening.
Although Albert Celades’ men have struggled for consistency this season, they are clear favourites against an Osasuna side, who have endured a difficult campaign themselves.
It seems they’ve done enough to remain in La Liga next season, but head coach Jagoba Arrasate still has his work cut out.
Celta Vigo vs Alaves (Prediction: 0-1)
Celta are struggling. After 29 matches, the club from Galicia have picked up just 27 points. As a consequence, they are 17th in the standings and are clearly staring down the barrel.
The Sky Blues will host Alaves in gameweek 30 of La Liga, and this is a must-win game for the home side if they are to avoid the drop.
Alaves, meanwhile, are 12th on the table, and their recent 2-0 home win against Real Sociedad makes them favourites heading into this game on Sunday evening.
All stats courtesy: La Liga.com