La Liga Matchday 3 Odds & Picks: Tailing Sevilla Clubs, Plus Big Wins for Atléti and Barça?

• Rejuvenated Sevilla (-182) kick off Matchday 3 at home against Celta Vigo on Friday
• Betis (-111) hosts Leganes in battle of only two pointless clubs on Saturday
• Espanyol (+107) faces Granada in a match with some intriguing goal total plays

Matchday 3 is upon us in Spain’s La Liga, with the big boys offering some parlay stack value but the more intriguing moneyline plays lying in the south.

Before we dive in, a mandatory peak at the Big Three.

Barcelona (-270) is at Osasuna, a place Messi and co. won 3-0 in their last trip back in 2017, on Saturday.

Real Madrid (-118) faces a tricky test away at Villareal, typically a steady mid-table that has had trouble defending this season. Consequently, the O/U line there is set at 3.5 — a little scary even though Sunday’s hosts have gone over in each of their first two games this season.

Atletico Madrid (-217) hosts Eibar in a match that screams a 1- or 2-nil win for Diego Simeone’s side.

Now, to the value: The city of Seville.

Sevilla v Celta Vigo Odds

*All odds taken 08/29/19

Julen Lopetegui’s Sevilla has been steady out of the gate, earning 2-0 and 1-0 wins away against Espanyol and Granada respectively to begin the campaign.

The rojiblancos open the home portion of their schedule on Friday against northerners Celta Vigo, who hit the road for the first time this season after a pair of home matches (3-1 loss vs Real Madrid, 1-0 win vs Valencia) to start the year.

Sevilla has looked sharp defensively and will be sure to create at least a handful of chances against a Vigo side which appears destined for an average mid-table season.

Pick: Sevilla (-182)

Betis v Leganes odds

Let us state the obvious: This is a game nobody will be watching.

Betis (19th) and Leganes (20th) are the only two remaining teams in La Liga yet to pick up a point this season.

They’ve managed it in different ways — Betis through a leaky backline (league-worst 7 GA) and Leganes through an inability to score (0 GF) — but both are off to disappointing starts.

Pressure will be firmly on the shoulders of new Betis manager Rubi; many Beticos questioned his resume, and the team’s tough start — a 5-2 loss at Barça last week included — will not have helped things in terms of the club’s year-to-year unrealistic expectations.

This, then, is a big game for the hosts, who have a superior squad and will be looking for a positive, attacking result at home against a drop zone-bound Leganes.

Pick: Betis (-111)

La Liga Parlay

To form this week’s parlay, take Sevilla and Betis on the moneyline with any one of the following Big Three plays:

Atletico Madrid -1.5 (+111) | Simeone’s side have looked calm and collected in a pair of 1-0 wins against middling opponents, but with Real Sociedad and Real Madrid looming on the medium horizon, Atleti will be looking to make a statement at home against another bottom-half team in Eibar.

Barcelona-Osasuna Over 2.5 (-108) | Barça won 3-0 on their last visit to El Sadar in 2017, and have averaged 3.9 goals over its last 10 meetings with Osasuna.

Barcelona -1.5 (+103) | See previous play.

Our gut instinct would tell us to steer clear of the Villareal-Real Madrid match, as an O/U of 3.5 is risky — even in a situation where Villareal’s defense has been porous early in the year. An Over 2.5 bet would be a no-brainer, but 3.5 just maxes out the risk past a justifiable point — the hosts could stack nine men behind the ball, Real Madrid could misfire on first-half opportunities, and all of a sudden it’s 0-0 at halftime and you need a miracle.

Plus, this:

The season has only just begun and Real Madrid are feeling the pain! ? pic.twitter.com/o3X0jk4Xhw

— 90min (@90min_Football) August 29, 2019

Steer clear.