SUNDAY IN EUROPE: Our football tipster The Ultra previews Sunday’s matches between DORTMUND v BAYER LEVERKUSEN, BARCELONA v ATLETICO MADRID, REAL BETIS v VILLARREAL and REAL MADRID v GRANADA all including a recommended BETDAQ bet.
DORTMUND V BAYER LEVERKUSEN
2.30pm League football in Europe has returned with a bang and we have another fantastic day to enjoy on Sunday on BETDAQ Betting Exchange! We have some massive games in the Bundesliga and La Liga, and we start in the Bundesliga with Dortmund hosting Bayer Leverkusen. This will be a high quality fixture and it’s a big game for both sides for different reasons. Dortmund are still chasing Bayern Munich and basically they just need to keep winning games and hopefully the title race gets close at some stage, while Bayer Leverkusen started the weekend in third but they are in a big fight to finish in the top four with the chasing pack very close behind. Bayer Leverkusen suffered a dip in form recently, but they got back on track with two impressive wins before the winter break. They created an xG of 5.59 away to Gladbach and then 3.28 at home to Augsburg. Leverkusen have been fantastic going forward this season, they have scored an average of 2.5 goals per game this season! That’s above their xG, but their xG isn’t bad either as that’s close to 2.0. Their games have been very entertaining, with an average of 4.1 goals per game.
Given that Dortmund have saw an average of 4.2 goals per game in the Bundesliga and also scored an average of 2.6 goals per game, surely we’re in for a cracker here! When you take out Bayern Munich, these two have been the most entertaining teams in the Bundesliga and hopefully they gel together well for an excellent game. Obviously with stats like the above, the market is expecting goals with over 2.5 goals trading 1.45 and both teams to score a little shorter at 1.42. While Dortmund have been grinding out some close wins in big games recently, I feel their run can end here – they managed to beat Hoffenheim and Eintracht Frankfurt 3-2, but Leverkusen have been creating so many chances I feel they can get a result here. Dortmund look too short for me at 2.06 and I fully expect a closer game than those odds reflect.
The Ultra Says:
Two points lay (liability) Dortmund to beat Bayer Leverkusen at 2.06 with BETDAQ Betting Exchange!
You can view all markets here -> https://bit.ly/BDQDorLev
BARCELONA V ATLETICO MADRID
3.15pm Next we move to La Liga for the highlight of the day, or maybe weekend, as Barcelona host Atletico Madrid. Last season, this was a huge fixture in the title race but this year it’s a massive game for different reasons. Both sides have been poor this season and they started the weekend sitting in 4th and 5th. Any chance at getting close to a La Liga title are gone, and their focus is now just getting Champions League football. They will both be hoping Real Betis fall out of the top four race, but for the time being this will decide who sits in the top four. For all their issues, Barcelona are only one point behind Atletico Madrid and they will fancy their chances of a win here. Although they clearly aren’t the club they used to be, the signs recently are positive. They’ve had four away games in a row and they seem to be getting a little more solid at the back but obviously they have a long way to go. The arrival of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang will be a great help up front, but they still have to improve at the back!
This will be a good test for Barcelona as Atletico have been creating some decent chances recently. They might have lost both games away from Sevilla and Real Madrid in the run-up to Christmas, but they finished those games with a higher xG twice and were unlucky to lose, particularly against Sevilla. It has been hard to fully access Barcelona in the betting markets this season to be honest. You look at the prices and feel they are much bigger than before, but they also aren’t the same side as before. We are still adjusting to Barcelona without Messi but I feel the 2.36 is a little too short on Barcelona here. I know Atletico have also not been at their best this season, but they can make this game closer than 2.36 suggests on Barcelona. We are unlikely to have an open game here as we usually see tight games between these two, and it could easily be Barcelona who make the mistakes at the back.
The Ultra Says:
Two points lay (liability) Barcelona to beat Atletico Madrid at 2.36 with BETDAQ Betting Exchange!
You can view all markets here -> https://bit.ly/BDQBarAti
REAL BETIS V VILLARREAL
5.30pm We have another fascinating La Liga game here as Real Betis hosting Villarreal. This actually another huge game with Real Betis trying to keep one of Barcelona and Atletico Madrid out of the top four. They started the weekend four points ahead of Atletico Madrid and five ahead of Barcelona, but they have played one game more and they can’t afford to drop points. This is a very tricky fixture too as Villarreal have been playing their best football of the season lately. Even in their 1-0 loss away to Elche, they created an xG of five times what Elche finished with and they were also unlucky to draw 2-2 at home to Atletico Madrid – they finished that game with an xG of 2.47 to 0.64. Their xG figures have been very impressively recently – their recent performances have included figures like 1.99, 2.47, 4.26, 3.60, 3.11 2.15 and 1.90. That 1.90 came away from home to Sevilla and they hammered Real Sociedad away from home too. Obviously Real Betis are having a fantastic season, but this is a brilliant fixture on paper.
It’s not a surprise to see an open market here. Betis have been excellent and they have home advantage, but you have to factor in that it’s a good time to be on Villarreal. They had a very slow start to the season, but they have been grinding their way up the table and they are back in the mix for a Europa League spot now. After two losses and a draw when it looked like the wheels might be coming off Real Betis, they bounced back with eight goals in two games. I have to say the jury is still out a little because those wins came against Alaves and Espanyol – this is a big jump in class here. It’s hard to see anything bar a very close game here but from a betting point of view I like Villarreal at 3.0. As I said above, they are playing their best football of the season at the moment and it seems a great time to back them. All eyes will be on Barcelona v Atletico Madrid today, but this should be a cracker too.
The Ultra Says:
Two points win Villarreal to beat Real Betis at 3.0 with BETDAQ Betting Exchange!
You can view all markets here -> https://bit.ly/BDQBtsVil
REAL MADRID V GRANADA
8pm We stay in La Liga to finish a brilliant day as Real Madrid host Granada. Real Madrid start the game as the shortest price of any side in La Liga this weekend, and it’s hard to see past a comfortable home win here. That being said, they have dropped points in two of their last three games with a loss to Getafe and a draw against Elche. It’s obviously very disappointing to drop points against sides towards the bottom of the table, but they did finish the Elche game with an xG of 5.24 against Elche which is an impressive performance. The performance against Getafe was more lacklustre, and they will have to play better here. The market might feel that this will be one way traffic, but Granada picked up a draw against Barcelona and a win against Atletico Madrid. While they are eye-catching results, they did come with home advantage while Granada have only picked up nine points from their 11 away games.
Although I can see a straightforward win for Real Madrid here, I have to say the 1.26 is probably one to avoid for the BETDAQ Multiples this weekend. Granada might have lost their last two games, but they were playing some nice football recently. They put together an unbeaten run of seven points prior to that, but it has to be mentioned Real Madrid ran out 4-1 winners when the sides met towards the end of November. I’m happy to stay out of the match odds market and the handicap markets here as I feel Real are a little short for backing. Granada tend to play an open game, and you know Real will enjoy an open game too – the best value in this game looks to be in the goals market and over 2.5 goals is my best bet at 2.19. It feels like today will be a very entertaining day, and hopefully we can finish with a bang!
The Ultra Says:
One point win Over 3.5 goals at 2.19 with BETDAQ Betting Exchange!
You can view all markets here -> https://bit.ly/BDQRmaGra
