La Liga Matchday 30 Odds & Picks: Key Top-6 Clashes

• Some mouth-watering matchups highlight Matchday 30 in Spain’s La Liga, as league leaders Barcelona (-111) face a challenging trip to Sevilla (+285) while 2nd-place Real Madrid (-120) are in for a battle at European hopefuls Real Sociedad (+310)
• At the opposite end of the table, 18th-place Mallorca (+174) host last-place Leganes (+181) in what equates to a must-win for either squad if they are to survive
• Get all the odds and best matchups for Matchday 30 in Spain below

It is truly all to play for in Spain’s La Liga with nine matchdays left.

The title race is red-hot with Barcelona’s rivals from the capital a mere two points back; races for both the Champions League and Europa League spots appear to be headed down to the wire, and; five clubs (Eibar, Vigo, Mallorca, Espanyol and Levante, in standings order) will battle it out in the relegation zone.

Matchday 30 kicks off with Granada (+199) playing host to Villareal (+144) in a matchup of two teams very much still in the mix for continental qualification.

La Liga Matchday 30 Odds

All odds taken June 19

Pick 1: Mallorca vs. Leganes

Though hardly a battle royale compared to the matches featuring top-half teams, Mallorca (7-4-18) and Leganes (5-8-16) will be competing for their first-division status the rest of the season — beginning Friday at 1:30 pm EST when they square off.

Pre-COVID, Mallorca had been a fun team to watch; not afraid to attack, but also one of the worst defensive sides in La Liga. In two games since returning, however, Vicente Moreno’s men are 0-0-2 with zero goals for and five conceded.

Leganes have not fared much better, also getting handed a pair of losses at the hands of Barcelona (0-2) and Valladolid (1-2).

Mallorca are essentially a .500 team (6-2-7) at home; Leganes are a pitiful 1-5-8 away from Butarque this season.

PICK: Mallorca (+174)

Pick 2: Sevilla vs. Barcelona

The complete other end of the table sees 3rd-place Sevilla (14-9-6) entertain title-chasers Barça (20-4-5) at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan later on Friday at 4:00 pm EST.

While their visitors have sprinted out of the COVID gate with two dominant wins against lesser opponents, Sevilla have been quieter with a 2-0 derby win over Betis being followed by a 1-1 draw away to Levante since the restart.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XgEZW5uE-3Q

Lopetegui’s Sevilla is also an interesting study; their 1.86 points-per-game at home this season ranks just 7th in La Liga this season, and the club has dropped serious points at the Sanchez Pizjuan against teams from the upper and lower echelon of the league.

That, combined with Barça’s form, makes this a safe play with a big team.

PICK: Barcelona (-111)

Pick 3: Atletico Madrid vs. Valladolid

It feels like we are watching the end of the Simeone era at Atletico (12-13-4) in slow motion.

Still sturdy defensively but unable to consistently score, Wednesday’s 5-0 win over Osasuna notwithstanding, Atleti sit two points back of 3rd-place Sevilla entering their home date with Valladolid (7-12-10) on Matchday 30.

100 – @atletienglish's Jan Oblak has become the goalkeeper with the fewest games needed to reach 100 clean sheets in @LaLigaEN history (182), surpassing Miguel Reina's record (100 clean sheets in 222 matches). Ace. pic.twitter.com/z8tfQDsG4N

— OptaJose (@OptaJose) June 17, 2020

Frankly, these are two teams that often attempt to stifle their opposition: Valladolid have been especially adept at keeping larger clubs like Real Madrid (0-1), Real Sociedad (0-1), Valencia (1-1) and the very same Atletico (0-0) at bay this season.

PICK: U 2, 2.5 (-107)