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La Liga: Midseason High & Lows

Reigning Champions Having a Tough Time

Losing Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi was a low blow for La Liga. Nevertheless, we’re still talking about one of the top five European leagues. Three of its teams qualified for the UEFA Champions League Round of 16.

Atletico Madrid back-to-back chances are fainting away. Not seeing Barcelona in the top three is kind of weird. I think it goes without saying that the soccer odds to win the title have considerably changed.

Toni Kroos waves La Liga Midseason
JAVIER SORIANO / AFP

Meeting Expectations

Real Madrid

Prior to the start of the season, Real Madrid was one of the betting online favorites to win the title. They were offering a +135 price. After 17 games, Los Blancos remain huge favorites to dethrone Atletico Madrid, now at -500.

Besides having a comfortable advantage at the top, they also are the top-scoring team with 2.2 goals per game. Karim Benzema and Vinicius Junior have become one of the best-attacking duos in the world. Together, they’ve scored more goals than 13 teams.

Manager Carlo Ancelotti has done a great job re-establishing a winning mentality. Madrid didn’t do any huge signings, but its players’ chemistry is second to none.

Above Expectations

Sevilla

Sevilla is one of those teams that always put up a fight. However, they’ve taken the next step by becoming third in Las Vegas odds to win the title at +1400. We’re talking about the best defensive team in La Liga. Sevilla allows less than one goal per game.

Manager Julen Lopetegui has a lot to do with that. He used to be a goalkeeper and played for Real Madrid and Barcelona. He has done a great job balancing the team and already led them to win the UEFA Europa League.

Experienced players such as Ivan Rakitic and Thomas Delaney set a good example for several promising rising stars. The list includes Jules Kounde, Oscar Rodriguez, and Rafa Mir.

Real Betis

Nobody saw it coming. Real Betis sitting in the top three after 17 games. Well, they are, and you can expect them to keep up. Manager Manuel Pellegrini knows La Liga pretty well after having coached Real Madrid and Villarreal.

Betis is one of those teams that’s not afraid of anything. Only Real Madrid has scored more goals than them.

Individually, Juanmi Jimenez is having an awesome season. He’s fighting with Benzema and Vinicius at the top of the scoring chart with 10 goals. William Jose has been his best companion; he leads the team in assists with four.

Rayo Vallecano

So far, Rayo Vallecano has been the second-best team that plays in Madrid. That’s right, they’ve outplayed Atletico Madrid. It goes without saying that Rayo Vallecano’s roster is way cheaper than Atletico Madrid’s.

Signing veteran striker Radamel Falcao was a great move. He’s a great road model for younger players, on and off the field. But that’s not all, he remains a lethal striker in the box.

Rayo Vallecano winning the title is unlikely but qualifying for the UCL or the UEL isn’t out of the question.

Not Meeting Expectations

Barcelona

You knew Barcelona was the leading character of this movie. Los Azulgranas haven’t been able to turn things around, not even with Xavi Hernandez in charge. Things will get a lot better once Ansu Fati and Pedri return from injury, but it might be too late.

“We have to hit the reset button and pick the players up. We must demand more dedication and more professionalism. Work hard to get Barca back where they deserve to be, competing with teams like Bayern,” said Hernandez after getting eliminated from the UCL.

They’ll play in the UEL, but it’s not the same. Not having so much pressure could help them to turn things around domestically, but not enough to constantly include them in your soccer picks. They don’t want to say it, but I think Barca is already thinking about next season.

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