La Liga Matchday 3 Odds & Picks: Barcelona, Sevilla and Atletico Madrid Return to Play

• Spain’s La Liga truly begins this weekend, with a Matchday 3 that finally includes debuts for Barcelona, Sevilla and Atletico Madrid
• Barcelona begin life without Luis Suarez and with the club in turmoil off the pitch against a strong Villarreal squad on Sunday
• Get all the odds and best bets for Matchday 3 in Spain’s top league below

As far as returns to play go, the Spanish top division has had a phased one; reigning champions Real Madrid returned to the pitch last weekend on Matchday 2, and the rest of the country’s ‘big four’ are set to finally make their respective 2020-21 debuts this Sunday.

Atletico Madrid opens their domestic campaign at home against a well-coached Granada (10:00 am ET), Sevilla face a tricky trip away to newly-promoted Cadiz in what equates to a Battle of Andalucia (12:30 pm ET) and Barcelona host third-place Villarreal to wind down the matchday (3:00 pm ET).

All three of those matches provide betting intrigue and will be watched closely by Real Madrid following their Saturday visit to the Estadio Benito Villamarin and Real Betis (3:00 pm).

La Liga Matchday 3 Odds

All odds taken  Sept 23 at DraftKings

Pick 1: Atletico Madrid vs Granada

As far as opening matches go for Atletico Madrid (0-0-0), undefeated Granada (2-0-0) is about as tough as they come amongst the 16 La Liga squads that have already played in 2020-21.

Coach Diego Martinez’s Granada boasts plenty of attacking talent, from veteran Roberto Soldado to Luis Milla and youngster Yangel Herrera, and has won three on the trot entering Thursday night’s Europa League match against Albania’s Tbilisi.

Atletico are largely unchanged from last season’s third-place squad; striker Alvaro Morata has departed for Juventus on a season-long loan, to be replaced in part by the arrival of Suarez from Barcelona and the expected improvement of Portuguese wonderkid Joao Felix in his second season at the club.

Sunday’s hosts have dominated Granada in head-to-head play, winning 11 of 14 meetings and drawing the other three, but it’s the goal totals that are noteworthy: their past three meetings — including last season’s (1-1 at Granada, 1-0 at Atletico) — have seen a total of just four goals scored.

Given Granada’s mid-week European matchup and Atleti’s rust, expect a similarly cagey affair.

PICK: U 1.5 (+185)

Pick 2: Cadiz vs Sevilla

Entering their meeting on Sunday, both Cadiz (1-0-1) and Sevilla (0-0-0) are riding highs; the former is back in La Liga for the first time since 2006, while the latter is fresh off competing in Thursday’s European Super Cup and a share of third place in 2019-20.

Cadiz are hardly a team that will thrill — aging striker Alvaro Negredo calls the team one “without stars, but united” — but definitely one that will compete, as evidenced by a strong 2-nil win at Huesca last weekend.

Tipped by many for relegation, Alvaro Cervera’s side is disciplined and will be challenging to break down.

Early in the season — and with Sevilla on just two days’ rest from their jaunt in Europe — this could be closer than bookmakers are anticipating.

PICK: Cadiz or Draw (+110)

Pick 3: FC Barcelona vs Villarreal

After jamming a regular offseason’s worth of drama into this year’s shortened one, Barcelona (0-0-0) return to the pitch on Sunday against Villarreal (1-1-0).

Club president Josep Bartomeu is being investigated for corruption, Luis Suarez has left for Atletico for a pittance (7M€)  of a transfer fee and, Miralem Pjanic aside, Barça’s transfer business has been underwhelming. Of course, there’s also the small issue of superstar Lionel Messi’s desire to leave the club earlier this month.

Villarreal is off to a decent start in league play, and feature a ‘greatest hits’ roster of the past decade in La Liga: Former Sevilla standout Vicente Iborra is the captain, while Valencia legend Dani Parejo joined the club this summer on a free transfer. The duo of Gerard Moreno and Paco Alcacer are supported by veteran Carlos Bacca in the attack, and any club managed by Unai Emery is going to be potent going forward.

Given Villarreal’s decent start — three goals and four points from their first two matches — and Barça’s strong attacking options, considering the ‘Over’ could be a good move in the final game of La Liga’s third matchday.

PICK: O 3.5 (+120)