As the new LaLiga season begins this weekend, we delve into several trends that could significantly enhance your chances of cashing out on BetKing. Alongside our insights, we’re pleased to provide you with some valuable betting tips for the upcoming season. **League Winner** While we expect a respectable title challenge from Atlético, the two major contenders for this season will be Real Madrid and Barcelona. Last season, Barcelona’s exceptional defense stood as the differentiating factor between the two sides. Under Xavi’s leadership, they only conceded a mere 20 goals in the league, with just 4 coming at the Camp Nou. This strong defensive stance enabled them to navigate occasional struggles in goal-scoring by securing narrow victories, as they claimed ten 1-0 victories after the World Cup break. While expecting a repeat of that historic feat might be unrealistic, we still project a robust defensive performance from them. Also, the signing of experienced midfielder, İlkay Gündoğan should provide additional protection for the defence, given that he protects the ball so well. And as we all know, if the opposition does not have the ball, they cannot harm you. Real Madrid, on the other hand, might have some concerns heading into the new season. Having outscored Barcelona by 5 goals last season, they now face the absence of the main goal-scoring force behind those accomplishments - Karim Benzema. While Joselu, signed from Espanyol, serves as a capable replacement, having notched an impressive 16 goals last season, it’s a colossal task to step into Benzema’s shoes. As stated earlier, last season’s primary disparity between the arch-rivals lay in their defensive performance. While Barcelona conceded 20 goals, Real Madrid conceded 36. The absence of significant improvements in Los Blancos’ defensive lineup raises more questions than it provides answers. Even with the addition of the highly talented midfielder, Jude Bellingham, there appears to be lingering uncertainties within the squad that require attention. Nevertheless, if they secure Kylian Mbappé’s signature in the latter stages of the transfer window as expected, their path to the title should become smoother. At BetKing, we are pleased to have both betting offers to our online sports betting customers at high odds.
**Top 4 Contenders** **Real Madrid** (1.08), **Barcelona** (1.10), and **Atlético** (1.36) are assured of securing spots within the Top 4. Real Madrid has maintained a Top 4 position consistently since the 1999/2000 season, while Barcelona has not fallen below that mark since 2002/03. Atlético’s last finish outside the Top 4 was in the 2011/12 season, in Diego Simeone’s first year in charge. So, we’ll skip these three, and focus on the other notable contenders for a Top 4 finish; **Real Sociedad** (2.85), **Sevilla** (3.20), **Villarreal** (3.40), **Athletic Bilbao** (4.00), and **Real Betis** (6.75). Imanol Alguacil led **Real Sociedad** to an impressive 4th placed finish last season. Many are tipping his side to remain in the Top 4, not because of last season, but because of their consistent improvement since he got the job in the 2017/18 season. That season, they finished 11th in LaLiga. However, subsequent seasons witnessed progress, resulting in rankings of 9th, 7th, 5th, 6th, and 4th. Only once did he take a step back, but he made up for that by getting them back into the Champions League. While they haven’t been too active in the transfer market, they still brought in Hamari Traore from Rennes on a Free Transfer while loaning Andre Silva in from RB Leipzig. Talks are also underway to bring in Donny can de Beek from Manchester United. This lack of investments in the squad coupled with the heavy demands of the Champions League leads us to believe they just might miss out this season. **Villarreal’s** 4th place finish in the 2015/16 season was their only Top 4 finish since returning to the top flight in 2013. We expect them to challenge for a top four spot but clinching one might be a bit much for them. Similarly, **Real Betis** faces a challenging situation, as their most recent Top 4 finish in LaLiga dates back 19 seasons. Our bet prediction is that these two would miss out on a Top 4 finish. This brings us to **Sevilla**. They secured Top 4 finishes for three consecutive years between 2020 and 2022, hitting the 70 points mark on each occasion. However, a shaky start to last season, partly because of the loss of center-back duo Jules Koundé and Diego Carlos, saw them stuck in the relegation zone for months. The appointment of José Luis Mendilibar as coach was a turning point, as the new manager stabilized Sevilla, leading them to an 11th place finish in the league. More significantly, they clinched the Europa League title, beating Manchester United, Juventus, and AS Roma along the way. In our assessment, they stand as the most formidable among the Top 4 contenders besides the traditional Big 3, and our bet of the day is for them to do just that.
**Over 2.5 Goals** Last season, **Real Madrid** (55%) and **Barcelona** (53%) matches didn’t feature as many **Over 2.5 Goals** games as expected. For Barcelona, theirs was more surprising as only 47% of the games at Nou Camp hit the **Over 2.5 Goals** mark. Interestingly, it was **Espanyol** (66%), despite their relegation, that led the chart in terms of such games. The second ( **Almeria** ), third (**Girona**), and fourth ( **Rayo Vallecano** ) ranked teams on this list continue to compete this season, making them worthy contenders to monitor. Conversely, the three teams with the lowest number of **Over 2.5 Goals** matches were **Real Sociedad** (13), **Mallorca** (12), and **Cadiz** (11). We advise exercising caution when considering these teams if you’re seeking high-scoring encounters. **Golden Boot Winner** Robert Lewandowski’s journey towards the Golden Boot appears set to remain unobstructed. The Polish striker is arguably this era’s most prolific scorer, clinching 8 league golden boots in the past 10 seasons, representing his stints at Borussia Dortmund, Bayern Munich, and most recently, Barcelona. The one formidable challenge we envision arises from Kylian Mbappé, assuming he completes his move to Real Madrid. With that move still up in the air, we strongly recommend consistently selecting Lewandowski as an **Anytime Scorer** throughout the season, particularly in home matches, and rest assured, we will provide comprehensive coverage of this, offering the best odds among all betting sites. [Bet on LaLiga Games Here](https://m.betking.com/sports/events/prematch/football/spain/la-liga)
**Most Likely to Blank On The Road** Last season, **Cadiz** (11 goals), **Elche** (12), **Real Valladolid** (12), **Getafe** (13), and **Osasuna** (13) struggled the most when playing away matches. With Elche and Real Valladolid already relegated, and the other three teams failing to significantly improve their attack - **Getafe** signed Choco Lozano, who managed just one league goal in 28 games last season; **Cadiz** signed Sergi Guardiola, who tallied 3 league goals in 31 games; and **Osasuna** is yet to secure a new striker - we strongly recommend bets against these teams scoring in their away matches as this trend is likely to continue throughout the upcoming season. [Sign up](https://m.betking.com/account/registration) to bet on the upcoming La Liga season today!