Born in the south east of Ireland, Simon put his life-long love of football to good use when he started a successful independent blog in 2010. That opened up an alternative route to a career in journalism, and having had work published across a number of sites and publications, Simon joined the staff at Spotlight Sports Group in 2018.
Last season, Real Madrid were crowned La Liga winners and Spanish champions for the 34th time, following a title race with Barcelona that never really threatened to spark into life.
With the cracks the led to the club’s embarrassing Champions League exit and subsequent crisis already starting to appear, Barca were unable to match the searing pace set by their traditional rivals in the campaign’s closing months – and after a sensational run of 10 wins from 11 games, Los Blancos were fully deserving of their crown.
Below the division’s strongest two, the battle to secure the remaining Champions League places was won with relative comfort by Atletico Madrid and Sevilla – though the skirmish for La Liga’s Europa League berths made for far more compelling viewing, with Villarreal, Real Sociedad and Granada the successful parties.
At the wrong end of the table, Espanyol, Mallorca and Leganes waved goodbye to La Liga, and were replaced by Huesca, Cadiz and Elche from the tier below – though all three new entrants have it all to do to avoid being sucked into the relegation vortex in 2020/21.
With the new La Liga campaign fast approaching, and combatants from Andalusia to the Basque Country readying themselves for a fresh charge at domestic success, we’ve taken a close look at how the season could pan out in our La Liga 2020/21 outright betting tips and predictions below.
Click here for our entire 2020/21 Season Outright Predictions Schedule.
La Liga winner odds
Odds correct as of 110m on 10th September 2020 on bet365.com
- Real Madrid – 4/6
- Barcelona – 7/4
- Atletico Madrid – 8/1
- Sevilla – 25/1
bet365 are also running a fantastic offer where your league winner outright bets can be paid out early if your team takes a lead of 10 points or more.
League Winner Early Payout Offer. Get your bets paid out early if the team you back takes a lead of 10 points or more in their league with bet365. Applies to bets on the To Win Outright market on selected leagues up to and including 15th October 2020. Bet restrictions and T&Cs apply. New and eligible customers only. You can find the full terms and conditions here.
La Liga winner predictions
Real Madrid – 4/6
Real Madrid are again the outstanding choice to win La Liga and to successful defend their crown this season, though their excellent prospects are down to their rival’s shortcomings as much as Los Blancos’ own qualities.
At Barcelona, Lionel Messi looks ready to perform a u-turn on his decision to leave, but with a squad littered with ageing stars and a new man in charge in the shape of the notoriously autocratic Ronaldo Koeman, the Catalan giants are entering what should prove a turbulent period of transition.
Down the road in Madrid at Atletico, it’s as you were for Diego Simeone’s robust Colchoneros, whose lack of activity in the summer market leaves them ill-equipped to claw back the 17-point gap difference between them and neighbours Real from last season.
Real Madrid meanwhile, start the new season with confidence and from a far more stable position, and though they resisted the urge to spend big this summer, in Federico Valverde, Rodrygo, Vinicius Junior and the back from loan Martin Odegaard, Real have a superb set of potential superstars expected to make further strides in 2020/21.
More too, will be expected from Eden Hazard, who will hope to produced the goods as a more settled player. The Belgian was a disappointment in 2019/20, though the 29-year-old has the skillset to make him a real game changer for Zinedine Zidane over the next nine months.
La Liga top 4 predictions
Sevilla to finish in the top four – 4/5
While perennial big-hitters Real Madrid, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid are all understandably massive favourites to finish in La Liga’s top four in 2020/21, their short odds prices to secure Champions League football next term makes them less than interesting picks.
Below La Liga’s traditional behemoths however, there is still value on offer, including our pick to land the fourth and final UCL qualification berth – Sevilla.
The Europa League champions finished in that lucrative position in 2019/20, ending the campaign a comfortable 10 points clear of Villarreal in 5th, and after some typically savvy transfer business, that saw them complete the signing of Oscar Rodriguez from Real Madrid, the permanent signing of loan star Suso from Milan and an interesting purchase in the vastly experienced Ivan Rakitic from Barcelona – Los Nervionenses are priced superbly at 4/5 to make the cut.
La Liga relegation predictions
Admittedly, selecting La Liga’s three newly promoted clubs as our standout candidates to go down lacks creativity, nevertheless, all three of the fresh top tier competitors seem to lack the quality to keep their necks above water in a division packed with accomplished teams.
Elche
Elche are back in the big time for the first time since 2015 following their play-off triumph, but having lost several players during the summer, a failure to inject fresh blood or extra quality into their ranks means a season of struggle looks probable for Los Franjiverdes.
Elche will also have a new coach in the dugout after Pacheta was replaced by Jorge Almirón, and the club’s decision to appoint the Argentine manager with zero European football experience could prove a costly gamble.
Cadiz
After Cadiz secured promotion to La Liga for the first time since 2006 thanks to their second place Segunda Division finish in 2019/20, club president Manuel Vizcaino had to make good on his promise to give away 10,000 season tickets for free.
However, if crowds do make it back inside the Nuevo Estadio Ramon de Carranza in 2020/21, they probably won’t get to see their team winning all that often.
Cadiz went on a massive shopping spree in the summer in terms of numbers, adding double figure new recruits to their squad, though on paper at least, it looks as though they opted for quantity over quality, and we expect their results to reflect that.
Huesca
Huesca won promotion to La Liga for the first time in the club’s history in 2018 and having dropped straight back down from the top tier the very next year, Spain’s newest yo-yo club are back after their title-winning Segunda Division campaign in 2019/20.
With the crux of the squad that were unable to cope with the demands of top-level football in 2018/19 sill at the club, Huesca shouldn’t be expected to pull up any trees this season, and the loss of title-winning coach Francisco to Girona over the summer was a further blow to their chances of staying afloat.
La Liga top scorer predictions
Karim Benzma – Real Madrid – 11/2
The incomparable Lionel Messi finished as La Liga’s top scorer in 2019/20, despite hitting lowest total (25) for a single league season since 2009.
While it seems over the top to suggest the Argentine’s powers are on the wane, the reduction in quality of his supporting cast at Barcelona could see his final haul for the 2020/21 season drop again – if of course the 33-year-old remains at the Camp Nou.
The uncertainty at Barcelona could open the door for Real Madrid hitman and second favourite to land the Pichichi Trophy – Karim Benzema – to fire his way to glory.
With 21 goals last season, the Frenchman came closest to challenging Messi at the top of the charts, and playing as the focal point in a more settled Los Blancos XI, Benzema looks worth backing to go one better than Leo at 11/2.
More FST News:
Premier League Winner predictions, odds and betting tips
Premier League relegation predictions, odds and betting tips
Premier League club by club guide part 1
Premier League club by club guide part 2
