Real Madrid vs FC Barcelona Prediction and Betting Tips

Imagine living in a world, where you get to see 2 El Clasico‘s in a row. Now realize you’re living in that world, and get ready for the match between Real Madrid and Barcelona on March 2nd only 2 days after Copa del Rey semi-finals which ended with an unexpected result of 0:3.

Real Madrid

Real Madrid are still licking their wounds after a 0:3 defeat against Barcelona on February 27th in semi-finals of Copa del Rey. It was a match no one expected to go the way it did, especially after a much better performance from Real Madrid in the 1st half, where they had 6 goal attempts and 2 shots on goal despite only having 40% ball possession. On the other side, Barcelona held the ball for 60% of the first half, produced 1 goal attempt and had no shots on goal. The 2nd half was, however, a completely different picture. Barcelona scored a goal only 5 minutes into the 2nd half with the help of Suarez, who managed to utilize Real Madrid’s error in defence. If that was not enough, Varane scored an own goal in 69th minute after a failed attempt to clear the ball. To be fair, there would be a goal either way, as Suarez was right there to put the ball into the net. With only 21 minutes to go and the scoreline showing 0:2, it was more or less clear that Barcelona would advance into the next stage. But just to make sure, Suarez scored his 2nd goal from a penalty kick which was awarded to Barcelona in the 73rd minute. But of course, he had to score the penalty with a “panenka” just to rub it into Real Madrid’s face.

FC Barcelona

With a complete dominance from Barcelona in Copa del Rey, the teams are getting ready to face off in LaLiga match. Looking at LaLiga standings, Barcelona are still at the top, 7 points ahead of 2nd placed Atletico Madrid and 9 points ahead of their rivals Real Madrid. At this point, Real is more or less out of the race for the title of LaLiga, on the other side, if Barcelona manages to win this one, it would bring them even closer to yet another LaLiga title, which should be theirs if there won’t be any surprises in the remaining rounds.

Looking at Barcelona this season, they are 3-2-0 in the last 5, playing a draw against Valencia (2:2) and Ath Bilbao (0:0), while defeating Girona (2:0), Valladolid (1:0) and most recently Sevilla (2:4). On the other side, Real Madrid are 4-0-1 in the last 5 league games. They lost to Girona (1:2), but managed to win against Espanyol (2:4), Alaves (3:0), Atl. Madrid (1:3) and most recently Levante (1:2).

CONCLUSION

What I expect to see is an entertaining match, which could go either way. While Barcelona did manage to win 0:3 in Copa del Rey match, I do not believe we will be looking at another dominant performance here. I still believe Barcelona have a stronger team, which works much much better and has better chemistry compared to Real Madrid team, who have got some chemistry issues, especially with all the “drama” surrounding Bale who reportedly does not get along with his teammates. If we add the humiliating defeat in Copa del Rey against their rivals, Real Madrid surely are not as confident coming into this match as they would have hoped to be. Taking all into consideration, I like Barcelona better in this matchup, however, at the same time, I would not be surprised if the match ends in a draw. Real Madrid, despite all the issues they reportedly have, are still a strong team and should not be underestimated solely due to one bad performance on Wednesday.