Villarreal vs Barcelona Prediction, Match Preview, Live Stream, Odds and Picks

Top Two Defensive Units in La Liga Collide

· Feb 10 - 5 minutes read

If the La Liga season ended today, Villarreal would qualify for the UEFA Conference League. Luckily for the Yellow Submarine, that’s not the case. Defeating Barcelona could boost them up to fifth place, allowing them to keep their Champions League hopes alive. But Los Azulgranas are on fire, coming in as the betting online favorites after not losing any of their last 11 matches.

Let’s check the latest La Liga news, stats, injury reports, and La Liga lines for Villarreal vs Barcelona. We’ve got plenty of La Liga picks for you to consider.

Barcelona's Spanish defender Jordi Alba - LLUIS GENE / afp

Villarreal: Determined to Bounce Back

Last Saturday, Villarreal was heavily favored to defeat Elche, the team sitting in last place. Well, the Yellow Submarine choked and lost 3-1. Pere Milla scored a hat-trick and was named Man of the Match. He scored the opener only three minutes into the game.

Prior to that, they played host to Rayo Vallecano and lost 1-0 despite winning possession with 62% and finishing with 12 shots in total, one more than the visitors. Sergio Camello scored the winning goal in the second half.

Losing to Rayo Vallecano doesn’t change the fact that the Yellow Submarine have been considerably better when playing at home. They own a 6-1-2 record at El Madrigal, while they’re 3-3-5 when playing on the road.

Defensively, Villarreal has allowed more than one goal only once when playing at home. That and the +330 price they’re offering in the sportsbook to win straight up make it a good betting option for this weekend.

Gerard Moreno, who’s the team’s top scorer with five goals, missed several games due to injury but returned better than ever. He scored in two of Villarreal’s last four La Liga games.

Barcelona: Flawless

Last Sunday, Barcelona defeated Sevilla 3-0, just like my good friend Alex predicted. Jordi Alba, Gavi and Raphinha were the scorers. Can you imagine? Robert Lewandowski didn’t score, and Barca still won 3-0.

All three goals were scored in the second half, but Los Azulgranas controlled the game from start to end, winning possession with 66% and finishing with seven shots on target, six more than Los Rojiblancos.

I previously mentioned Lewandowski because he’s the league’s top scorer with 14 goals. He’s one of the main reasons Barcelona is the top-scoring team with 42 goals, two more than Real Madrid, owning the best defensive record after only allowing seven goals in 20 games.

Overall, Los Azulgranas won 10 of their last 11 matches. Plus, they’re 9-0-1 when playing on the road. Considering all of the above, the -125 price that they’re offering to win straight up is a great deal.

Finally, Barcelona can’t afford to lose since it’s very likely that Real Madrid will defeat Elche at home. If Los Azulgranas don’t win, the gap between the two at the top of the standings could be reduced to five points.

Villarreal vs Barcelona Head-to-Head

Previous Matches: 49
Villarreal Victories: 9 (58 goals)
Barcelona Victories: 30 (104 goals)
Draws: 10

Barcelona had no trouble fulfilling their role as soccer betting favorites in the first meeting with Villarreal in October. The game, held at Camp Nou, finished 3-0 with Robert Lewandowski as Man of the Match after scoring a brace. Ansu Fati also scored. All three goals were scored in the first half

Los Azulgranas won eight of their last 10 meetings with the Yellow Submarine, finishing with a clean sheet three times and failing to score only once.

Villarreal vs Barcelona Match Information

Match: Villarreal vs Barcelona
Date/time: Sunday, Feb. 12, 3:00 p.m. ET
Location: El Madrigal, Villarreal
Villarreal vs Barcelona Live Stream: fuboTV

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