After a week full of great matches in the group stage of the UEFA Champions League, we return to the actions of the local European leagues, and LaLiga is no exception, since starting this Friday the 12th matchday will kick off with the match between Mallorca and Espanyol, while it will end next Monday with Elche vs. Getafe.
The general classification table has already returned to the common factor of the last few seasons, with Real Madrid (31), FC Barcelona (28), and Atlético Madrid (23) occupying the top three places in the table. Then we have Real Sociedad with 22 points, Betis with 20, and Athletic with 18. These last 3 teams saw a defeat take them straight off the top of the table.
Villarreal (18) has confirmed that Unai Emery is no longer their coach and his place will be taken by former FC Barcelona coach Quique Setién. Osasuna (17) are also very close to European competition places and, if they get back to winning ways on this matchday 12, they could climb up to 3 positions and move into fifth place in the table.
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At the bottom of the table, we continue with the same teams, Girona, Cadiz, and Elche, although there is still a long season ahead and, if they have an important winning streak, they could get out of the bad moment they are in, they need to start harvesting victories at this time, where Espanyol, which is in the #14 position has only 10 points, that is, they have not yet moved far away from the bottom of the table.
When everything seemed to be well on track for Sevilla, after the dismissal of Lopetegui and the hiring of Sampaoli, they faced the leaders, Real Madrid and at the Santiago Bernabéu, one of the most complicated stadiums for the Sevillistas throughout their history and again suffered a defeat.
We must emphasize that the continuity of LaLiga Santander from this 12th matchday will be an unknown for everyone since there is still the possibility that the teams will go on strike and that the coming matchdays will be suspended. This is due to several reforms in the Ley del Deporte that the Spanish government does not want to apply.
That said, and, if everything goes as expected, below, we will have a preview of the best matches that you can enjoy on this 12th LaLiga matchday.
LaLiga Santander Matchday 12 – Preview – Betis vs. Real Sociedad – Info
When: Sunday, October 30 at 04:00 pm ET
Moneyline odds: Betis +275 / Real Sociedad +101 (Source: MyBookie.ag)
Draw Offs: +250
Where Can I Watch it? ESPN / SKY HD / NBCSN / DAZN
Where Can Stream? ESPN Play / NBC Sports App
One of the most evenly matched games that we will have in this 12th round of LaLiga will be, without a doubt, the one that Betis and Real Sociedad will play next Sunday, October 30, 2022, at the Reale Arena, home of Real Sociedad at 04:00 pm ET.
This duel has been balanced in recent years in LaLiga, since, in the last 20 matches they have faced each other, Real Sociedad has managed to score 8 wins, Betis 6 wins, while the remaining 6 matches have ended with a draw.
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The dream of playing in the Champions League is very close for these teams since they are only separated by 1 point in the standings, and they are fighting for fourth place, the last that, in theory, would give them the ticket to the next edition of the European championship.
Betis started the season with an impressive rhythm, managing to have a record of 5 wins and 1 loss and thus being very close to the first place in the table, but, as the weeks go by, we have seen how their performance has declined in such a way that, in their last 5 games they have all the possible results, 1 win, 2 draws and 2 losses.
Los Verdiblancos urgently need to get back to winning ways this matchday as they could even climb up to the third position in the table. In the same way, Betis has to do a very good job of recovery, since tomorrow, Thursday, October 27, they will play the fifth matchday of the Europa League group stage against Ludogorets.
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On the other hand, Real Sociedad was one of the teams that arrived in the best possible way to the 11th round of LaLiga Santander, since, they accumulated 5 consecutive victories and, they had been placed only 3 points behind FC Barcelona, but unexpectedly they fell in their visit to Valladolid with a score of 0-1.
Now they must recover the winning streak they had to continue with the illusion of fighting, even with Atlético Madrid, for the third place in the table. Like Betis, Real Sociedad also has to play their Europa League match against Omonia.
This means that both teams will not come to this match with the desired rest, i.e. we can expect a somewhat slow game with few scoring opportunities.
That is why our selection for this game is a 0-0 draw.
Betis vs. Real Sociedad Betting Pick: Draw
LaLiga Santander Matchday 12 – Preview – Athletic vs. Villarreal – Info
When: Sunday, October 30 at 12:30 pm ET
Moneyline odds: Athletic +114 / Villarreal +246 (Source: MyBookie.ag)
Draw Offs: +240
Where Can I Watch it? ESPN / SKY HD / NBCSN / DAZN
Where Can Stream? ESPN Play / NBC Sports App
Athletic and Villarreal face each other in this 12th round of LaLiga in a match within the zone that gives quotas for European competitions. 6th and 7th are tied on points and are fighting for a place in the Conference League, chasing Betis, in Europa League for now.
This match between Athletic and Villarreal will be this Sunday, October 30, 2022, at the San Mamés Stadium, home of Athletic Club at 12:30 pm ET.
Athletic vs. Villarreal has been one of the most exciting matches in recent seasons, as, if we look at the history of the games played in the last 2 seasons, we can see that 3 of them have ended in a 1-1 draw, while the remaining one was a victory for Athletic Club with a score of 2-1.
That is what we expect this matchday, a very intense match, but with a lot of precision from both teams, trying to make as few mistakes as possible and keeping a clean sheet.
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Athletic was one of the teams that were animating LaLiga Santander at the beginning of the season, but they come to this matchday on a bad streak of 4 consecutive matches without knowing the victory, in which they accumulated 2 draws and 2 defeats. The last one was a terrible loss against FC Barcelona, with a score of 0-4.
But, thanks to the excellent start they had, they are still in European competition positions, specifically in sixth place, so, all is not lost for them.
On the other side of the field, they will have a Villarreal that arrives with many confusions and doubts, despite having won their match the previous day against Almería, since, as we mentioned, Unai Emery decided to separate from the team and head to the Premier League, so, we must wait how the team will adapt in a week, under the command of Quique Setién.
Villarreal has played very good games in recent years under Emery. Now, we all know the potential that Setién has in LaLiga, and can expect an equal or better performance from his new team.
Either way, our selection for this match is an Athletic victory with a score of 1-0.
Athletic vs. Villarreal Betting Pick: Athletic
LaLiga Santander Matchday 12 – Preview – Valencia vs. FC Barcelona – Info
When: Saturday, October 29 at 03:00 pm ET
Moneyline odds: Valencia +400 / FC Barcelona -162 (Source: MyBookie.ag)
Draw Offs: +330
Where Can I Watch it? ESPN / SKY HD / NBCSN / DAZN.
Where Can Stream? ESPN Play / NBC Sports App
We close this LaLiga matchday 12 previews with the game between Valencia and FC Barcelona, which will be played this Saturday, October 29, 2022, at the Mestalla Stadium, home of Valencia at 03:00 pm ET.
Valencia, coached by Gennaro Gattuso, hosts Barcelona this Saturday and has only beaten them at Mestalla in 1 of their last 15 encounters, since a 2-1 win in the 2006-2007 season. The only win came three years ago, when in the 2019-2020 season Valencia won 2-0 with goals from Maxi Gomez, both in the second half of a match in which Uruguayan attacker Luis Suárez of FC Barcelona missed a penalty in the first half.
Gattuso and Xavi have met three times at the club level. In them, total equality, a draw, and a victory for each one.
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However, the current situation of both teams this season is completely different.
FC Barcelona wants to continue at its best level in LaLiga, since, as its president, Joan Laporta mentioned, his goal this season is to become the league champions, since the Champions League is practically impossible and, this has been transmitted in the best possible way to his team since FC Barcelona arrives to this matchday after an excellent crushing victory against Athletic with a score of 4-0.
In this match, we saw a completely different team, in terms of mood and confidence than the one we saw against Inter in midweek. Similarly, we must wait for the result between FC Barcelona and Bayern in the Champions League match to be played today, October 26.
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On the other hand, Valencia has gone from being one of the strong and dangerous teams in LaLiga to being just another team. This is mainly due to the lack of investment from their Chinese owners, that committed many mistakes in the administration of the club, including the controversies surrounding the new stadium.
Currently, Valencia is in ninth place in the overall standings with a record of 4 wins, 3 draws, and 4 defeats, and, they come into this match after a painful defeat at home to Mallorca with a score of 1-2.
That said, for this match, we do not doubt that the winner will be FC Barcelona and our prediction is a final score of 4-0.
Valencia vs. FC Barcelona Betting Pick: FC Barcelona
Other matches of this matchday 12 of LaLiga Santander
- Celta vs. Almería Betting Pick: Celta
- Mallorca vs. Espanyol Betting Pick: Draw
- Atlético Madrid vs. Cádiz Betting Pick: Atlético Madrid
- Rayo Vallecano vs. Sevilla Betting Pick: Sevilla
- Valladolid vs. Osasuna Betting Pick: Osasuna
- Girona vs. Real Madrid Betting Pick: Real Madrid
- Getafe vs. Elche Betting Pick: Draw
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