Alavés and Barcelona meet on Saturday for a match that will act as an early dress rehearsal for the Copa del Rey final after both of these two came through their semi-final ties during the week.
Having been languishing down in the second tier of Spanish football for some time, it’s quite remarkable how well Alavés have coped in La Liga this season and they’ve been duly rewarded with a cup final. However, there’s plenty of work to do before then and it’s back down to it on Saturday afternoon as they attempt to thwart some of the best players on the planet.
Even though there’s a gulf in quality between these two on paper, Alavés have proven that they’re capable of cutting it with the big boys, especially Barcelona. Having lost 2-1 in the reverse of this fixture earlier in the season, the visitors are well aware of how difficult an opponent the Basque side can be.
After getting the better of Celta Vigo in the aforementioned semi-final on Wednesday night, Mauricio Pellegrino’s team will be high on confidence and it would be no surprise if they were capable of frustrating the Catalan club for a while. However, after a tough match on Wednesday, they might struggle to resist what is likely to be wave after wave of Barcelona pressure for the entire 90 minutes. With this in mind, the bet that appeals most is ‘Barcelona to Score Over 1.5 Second Half Goals’.
With the players Barcelona have available it’s never difficult to fancy them to score goals, regardless of whether they’re playing at home or away. After all, Messi & Co are capable of making a mockery out of even the sturdiest defences in the world. Having said this, a lot of their best work this season, especially in the league, has been done after the break.
35 of Barcelona’s 55 league goals have been scored in the second half, while they’ve notched at least twice after the interval on ten occasions. On the road, 20 of the 29 goals scored by Luis Enrique’s men have come during the second half, scoring two or more during the second 45 in six of their 11 league matches and in five out of six against teams in the bottom half of the table.
The hosts are certainly fancied to remain competitive during the early stages of this match, but Barcelona really should have the tools to pick the Alavés lock a couple of times during the second half.
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