Barcelona v Valencia Betting Preview: Soldado to cause Tito Vilanova's side problems

Sep 1, 2012 11:00:00 AM

The Catalan giants may have won their opening two games but Jim Knight expects Valencia to make life difficult on Sunday evening

Valencia's first two games in La Liga have ended in score draws, and they face a seemingly uphill task if they are to claim their first win of the campaign when they travel to Camp Nou to take on a Barcelona side who are already five points ahead of Real Madrid.

The visitors are available at 12/1 (13.0) with Bet365, but Tito Vilanova's side suffered a scare against Osasuna when they had to come from a goal down, with a Lionel Messi double ensuring they maintained their 100 per cent record in the league.

It is unsurprising to see them at a short price, quoted as they are at 2/9 (1.22) to claim another victory on home soil. A draw is priced at 5/1 (6.0).

Prior to their Supercopa loss to Real Madrid on Wednesday, Barcelona had recorded three straight wins in competitive matches, but in that time they also failed to keep a clean sheet, an issue that will be of concern to Vilanova, especially considering how easily the Madrid attack exposed them at the Santiago Bernabeu.

Valencia have not recorded a clean sheet in either of their league games so far this season and they conceded two late goals against newly-promoted Deportivo La Coruna as they surrendered a two-goal lead in their 3-3 draw. All things considered, the 5/6 (1.83) shot on both teams to score does appeal and should be the main selection for this match.

The goalscorer markets are particularly tough to call, as always with Barcelona. Lionel Messi is just 15/8 (2.88) to score first, with Alexis Sanchez available at an industry best 5/1 (6.0).

Roberto Soldado will lead the line for Valencia and he is an 11/1 (12.0) shot to score first. Soldado hit a first-half double against La Coruna and should be full of confidence. For those who believe he could find the net twice yet again, he is available at a massive 20/1 (21.0).

For a another potential bet, consider backing Barcelona to record another win in a high-scoring match. The home win with over 3.5 goals in the game is a 6/5 (2.20) shot and could be worthy of a smaller stake. But for a bigger-priced value bet, back Soldado to continue his goalscoring run; the 27-year-old striker is 13/5 (3.60) to score anytime.

BET

OF THE

DAY

BEST BET

VALUE BET

Both Teams to Score at 5/6 (1.83) with Bet365

Roberto Soldado to score anytime at 13/5 (3.60) with Bet365

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Jim Knight is Betting Editor at Goal.com and has been tipping football games since he was old enough to place a bet. He is a Leicester City fan, writer and member of the We Are Going Up Podcast
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