Will Barca win against a welcome guest?
FC Barcelona are really starting to get into their stride. The Catalans will be looking to end an impressive week on a high note and record their third home win in seven days – their two victories in the league and Champions League have already put a clear exclamation mark on their rivals with 5-0 wins in each.
On matchday 6 in Spain’s La Liga, Barça will take on Celta Vigo on Saturday at 18:30, once again at their home Olympic Stadium Lluis Companys. With Barcelona vs. Celta Vigo, the betting on the next (clear) home victory for the Catalans is of course extremely close.
There is actually little reason to worry that Xavi Hernandez’s team will not be able to celebrate their third home win within a week – they have been too dominant and superior in the last two home games. But the fact that Celta Vigo have been able to upset the favourites from Catalonia time and again recently is shown by a look at the direct comparison, which takes place further down in the text.
In addition, the two most recent performances of the Blaugrana have naturally caused the odds on a home win to plummet ahead of the Barcelona vs Celta Vigo match. We therefore provide you with alternatives to the not particularly worthwhile three-way bet on Barça in this article.
Barcelona – Statistics & current form
So far, the week is going perfectly for FC Barcelona. Two games, two wins, 10-0 goals – the crowd has finally been properly treated again at the newly occupied Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys, the alternative stadium during the reconstruction of the Camp Nou. Last week’s 5-0 win over Real Betis was the best performance in the league, followed a few days later by the same result in the Champions League, a 5-0 win over CL newcomers Royal Antwerp.
In both victories, we finally saw the typical Barça football again, which has not always been so impressive under Xavi. Courageous, ball-secure and creative attacking play, a clear superiority garnished with ease and accuracy in front of the opponent’s goal
Joao Felix shines
The performance of Joao Felix, on loan from Atletico Madrid, was particularly noteworthy in both games. He made his home debut against Betis and scored directly to make it 1-0, as did compatriot Joao Cancelo, who made it 5-0. Against Anwerpen, the playful Felix scored two goals and provided one assist. Robert Lewandowski also benefited from the creative offensive play, scoring in both games.
So will it continue like this against Celta? Even if Xavi might rotate a little, the prediction for Barcelona vs. Celta Vigo is for another at least unchallenged home victory. The handicap tip is 1.80 – not the most lucrative odds, but worth considering
Predicted Barcelona line-up:
FC Barcelona (Expected line-up) 4-3-3
Celta Vigo – Statistics & current form
Celta Vigo are not doing nearly as well as their opponents Barça. The Galicians have had another disappointing start to the season and find themselves in the bottom third of the table. This is particularly due to a home weakness: Celta have not yet been able to score a single goal at the Estadio Balaidos.
Fortunately, they are now playing away, you could say. Because here, remarkably, Celta is still unbeaten. On matchday 2, they drew 1-1 with Champions League participants Real Sociedad, and on matchday 4 they even won 3-2 in Almeria. Despite these two good away performances, Celta naturally envisaged a much better start to the season under new coach Rafael Benitez – to be in 16th place with four points from five games is a disappointing haul.
Celta Vigo with good record against Barcelona
Will it get any better this matchday, just when they take on FC Barcelona? After all, Celta Vigo know what it’s like to annoy the Catalans (regularly). Only five of the last ten games against Barça were lost. Three victories and two draws were also achieved, a remarkable result against the favourites.
However, most of the points were won at home in the Balaidos. The odds on Barcelona vs. Celta Vigo make it all too clear that the Galicians are the clear underdogs on Saturday.
Predicted line-up of Celta Vigo:
Celta Vigo (Expected line-up) 5-4-1
Barcelona – Celta Vigo Direct Comparison / H2H Balance
So Celta’s record against Barça has been strong recently, but that’s mainly due to home games at the Balaidos. There’s far less to harvest in Barcelona. Celta have lost eleven of their last 15 matches at home – ten of them with a difference of two goals or more!
Barça scored 41 goals in these 15 games, making a goal average of 2.70. Twice there was a 5:0, a 6:1, 4:1 and three times a 3:1 was also included. Barça’s overall record in home games against Celta also goes in the same direction. There have been 65 games, of which Barça have won 49, with twelve draws and four Celta victories – goal difference: 173 to 51. That makes a goal average of 2.66 goals scored by the home team.
Picking odds of Over 2.5 or even Over 3.5 on Barcelona vs. Celta Vigo, or betting on both teams to score, can therefore be obvious and worthwhile in view of these results and record.
Barcelona – Celta Vigo Tip
The rule of thumb on this pairing recently has been: In away games in Vigo, Barça regularly have big problems, while in home games they usually win without any problems. Will it be the same on Saturday at the Olympic Stadium on the city hill in Barcelona?
Barça’s 5-0 wins within a week were a clear sign. If Barça play with ease and self-confidence as they have done recently, Celta will have little to counter, as the Galicians have never been known for an insurmountable defensive bulwark. We therefore believe that the historic record will come true once again and predict that Barça will win and score more than 2.5 goals in Barcelona vs. Celta Vigo.
