Sunday, August 28, 2011
Primera Liga preview
The Primera Liga belatedly starts this weekend after the dispute between the Association of Spanish Footballers and the Spanish League was resolved. Sky Bet La Liga odds: Barcelona - 8/15, Real Madrid - 6/4. Bet now. Jose Mourinho's Real Madrid embark on Mission Impossible Part II with a trip to Real Zaragoza as they attempt to stop a Barcelona side strengthened by the acquisition of Cesc Fabregas and Alexis Sanchez. Mourinho was partially successful last season with victory in the Copa del Rey final, denying Pep Guardiola his second treble in three seasons as Barcelona manager. The other trophies, however, belonged to Barcelona. Madrid have focused on adding to the squad: left back Fabio Coentrao, Espanyol's Jose Callejon and sumptuous Turkish international Nuri Sahin arriving amidst little fanfare. Match previews Saturday 27 Sporting Gijon v Sociedad, 17:00 Valencia v Racing Santander, 19:00 Granada v Real Betis, 21:00 Sunday, 28 Atl. Madrid v Osasuna, 11:00 Bilbao v Rayo Vallecano, 15:00 Getafe v Levante, 17:00 Mallorca v Espanyol, 17:00 Real Zaragoza v Real Madrid, 19:00 Sevilla v Malaga, 21:00 Monday 29 Barcelona v Villarreal, 20:00 After the controversy of their Supercopa defeat, Mourinho will be looking to ensure his side avoid a repeat of the 3-2 defeat his side suffered when they last face Zaragoza when they meet a 7pm on Sunday, live on Sky Sports HD1. Barcelona have already got two trophies under their belt after adding the European Super Cup to the Supercopa title with Friday's 2-0 win over Porto. Fabregas is already off the mark after coming off the bench to net against the Europa League winners, while Lionel Messi took his tally to four goals before the league campaign has even started with the opener. Andalucian derby However, arguably the most intriguing encounter of the weekend sees Sevilla hosting big spending Malaga. Sevilla have perennially been Andalucia's top side but following a summer of star signings it is Malaga who are being tipped to push for a Championships League spot with the likes of Martin Demichelis, Jeremy Toulalan, Santi Cazorla, Joaquin and Ruud van Nistelrooy on board. In contrast, Atletico Madrid are also looking to move on after losing stars Sergio Aguero and David De Gea over the summer, with Falcao and Arda Turan leading the transition as they start the season with the visit of Osasuna. Sky Bet Top scorer odds: Cristiano Ronaldo - 7/4, Lionel Messi - 2/1, David Villa - 8/1, Gonzalo Higuain - 12/1, Karin Benzema - 12/1. Bet here. Marcelo Bielsa's appointment as Atletico Bilbao boss also represents a new era at the San Mames, which hosts Real Vallecano, while Getafe are set to hand a debut to Daniel Guiza when Levante visit the Coliseum Alfonso Perez. Modest targets In Sunday's other clash, Real Mallorca host Espanyol with both clubs harbouring modest ambitions with after the former only just clinging on to top-flight status last term while their visitors have lost top scorer Osvaldo. On Saturday evening, Valencia begin life without Juan Mata with a visit of Racing with new boy Dani Parejo looking to fill the Chelsea signing's void. Granada return to Primera Division football for the first time in 35 years when they entertain another newly promoted side in Real Betis, live on Sky Sports HD4 at 9pm , while the first game of the weekend sees Sporting Gijon host Real Sociadad.