While Barcelona hasn’t lost in its last 13 La Liga games, Almeria only won two of its last 10. Losing to Barca could make Almeria fall into the relegation zone, which should be enough motivation to go all-in right from the start.
On the other hand, winning La Liga is all Barcelona has left, meaning the visitors will also go all-in right from the start, and as expected, they come in as the betting online favorites for this match.
Almeria: Good News
Last Friday, Almeria visited Girona and lost 6-2 after the first half finished 4-0. Believe it or not, Almeria ended up taking two more shots than the home side. That’s good news, but it needs the defense to catch up.
Almeria currently sits in 17th place, thanks to a 6-4-12 record. But all six victories were at home, and they scored three or more goals in four of those wins, so playing at home is good news for the club. Its most recent home win was on Jan. 27, defeating Espanyol 3-1, before losing to Real Betis 3-2 on Feb. 11.
El Bilal Toure is Almeria’s top scorer with five goals.
Almeria is offering +600 odds in the sportsbook to win straight up, but considering its lackluster season and its history against Barcelona, I recommend you fade the club for this match.
Barcelona: No More Europe
Midweek, Barcelona visited Old Trafford, aka the Theatre of Dreams, but ended up trapped in a nightmare. Manchester United came from behind to win 2-1, moving on into the Round of 16 with a 4-3 aggregate.
Things have been completely different in La Liga, though. Barcelona is atop the standings with an eight-point advantage over Real Madrid. Unbeaten in its last 13 games, Barcelona owns the best defensive record after only conceding seven goals in 22 games.
On Sunday, Barcelona defeated Cadiz 2-0, with Sergi Roberto and Robert Lewandowski as the scorers. Lewandowski is leading the race to win the Golden Boot with 15 goals. He also leads the team in assists with five, the same as Ousmane Dembele—just one of the reasons for Barcelona being heavily favored in the La Liga lines. We’re talking about a -230 price, which doesn’t seem so high when we look at the club’s road record, 10-0-1.
Pedri won’t be available due to injury, but Barcelona’s depth is uncanny. Last Thursday in Manchester, players such as Ansu Fati, Ferran Torres and Marcos Alonso came off the bench.
Almeria vs Barcelona Head-to-Head
- Previous Matches: 15
- Almeria Victories: 0 (7 goals)
- Barcelona Victories: 13 (47 goals)
- Draws: 2
Barcelona won the first meeting against Almeria 2-0. Ousmane Dembele scored the opener three minutes into the second half, while Frenkie de Jong sealed the deal 14 minutes later. Robert Lewandowski missed a penalty in the first half.
Almeria has never beaten Barcelona, but keep in mind that both draws between the two were at Power Horse Stadium.
Almeria vs Barcelona Match Information
- Match: Almeria vs Barcelona
- Date: Sunday, Feb. 26th
- Time: 12:30 p.m. ET
- Location: Power Horse Stadium, Almeria
- Almeria vs Barcelona Live Stream: fubo.tv
Almeria vs Barcelona Betting Lines
Almeria vs Barcelona Picks and Prediction
Forget about an upset. Barcelona is determined to bounce back and send a message, meaning it will show no mercy. Therefore, you can expect it to score more than 2½ goals on the road for the fourth time this season. I would recommend you include the team’s total going over in your La Liga picks, even if it was at 3½ goals. Besides Lewandowski, there’s Gavi, who didn’t play at Old Trafford, meaning he’ll be well-rested and eager to put on a show.
Barcelona is listed at -230 in our Vegas La Liga lines. This means that if you wager $100 on Barcelona, you have a chance to win $43. The Almeria is +600, offering a chance to win $600 on a $100 wager.
The implied probability attached to the betting lines gives Barcelona a 69.70% chance to win, with Almeria at 14.29%.
Almeria vs Barcelona Match Detail
