La Liga: Osasuna vs Barcelona Odds
Defending Champions Head to Tricky Osasuna
Barcelona Win Seven-Goal Thriller
Osasuna were one of the surprises of the 2022-23 La Liga season, as they finished in seventh place. They’ve kicked off their 2023-24 campaign with two wins and a loss and have a crucial match vs. Barcelona on Sunday. Barça, the defending La Liga champions, are coming off a thrilling 4-3 victory over Villarreal and are looking to remain unbeaten. As FCB heads to Pamplona, we’ll preview the Osasuna vs Barcelona odds in one of the La Liga games of the weekend.
Osasuna vs Barcelona
Date & Time:
Location: Estadio El Sadar, Pamplona, Spain
Head-to-Head:
FC Barcelona won both of their La Liga fixtures vs. Osasuna last season. Incredibly, a nine-man Barcelona came back from 1-0 down to defeat Osasuna 2-1 in Pamplona. Jordi Alba scored the game’s only goal in the reverse fixture at Camp Nou. Barcelona have won the last three meetings and are unbeaten in the previous six. The last time Osasuna defeated Barcelona at home was back in 2012.
Osasuna Grab Dramatic Victory
Osasuna went on the road to Valencia for La Liga Matchday 3, coming off a 2-0 defeat vs. Athletic Bilbao. Midway through the first half, Osasuna won a penalty that Aimar Oroz sent into the back of the net. However, Hugo Duro leveled the score in the second half on an acrobatic header. Valencia had a few other chances to go in front but couldn’t capitalize.
In stoppage time, Osasuna had one last chance to steal three points, and they made the most of it. Off of a corner, Ante Budimir managed to keep the ball alive on a header, and substitute defender Nacho Vidal scored an incredible bicycle kick. With the victory, Osasuna improved to 2-1, and they’ll have hope of building on their seventh-place finish in the Spanish La Liga standings from last season. Jagoba Arrasate has done an excellent job since he took over as manager of Osasuna in 2018.
Even with a limited transfer budget and few national team players, Arrasate hasn’t finished below 11th in four La Liga seasons. On Thursday, Osasuna narrowly missed qualifying for the UEFA Europa Conference League. They entered the second leg of their qualifier with Club Brugge down 1-0 and went up 2-0. However, two second-half goals from Brugge meant the Belgian side won 3-2 on aggregate.
Barcelona’s Squad Thinning Out
Long gone are the days of Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez, and Neymar for Barcelona. Now, they rely heavily on Robert Lewandowski and don’t exactly have world-class options surrounding him. Ousmane Dembele left Barcelona for PSG this Summer and left winger Ansu Fati is set to join Brighton on loan. Abde Ezzalzouli could also leave the club on loan before the transfer window shuts on Friday.
Plus, longtime Barcelona players Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba departed the club this Summer to join Inter Miami. Now that Barcelona’s squad is exceptionally thin, Xavi is being forced to call up youth players. Wonderkid Lamine Yamal hasn’t looked out of place on the right wing, where he’s registered an assist. Meanwhile, Gavi and Pedri are massive parts of the team, and 20-year-old midfielder Fermin Lopez made his debut last weekend.
Last weekend, Barcelona took a 2-0 lead at Villarreal but capitulated and trailed 3-2 by the 50th minute. Goals from Ferran Torres and Lewandowski meant Barça went back on top and the match finished 4-3. Barcelona will need Lewa healthy if they’re to successfully defend their La Liga title. Currently, defenders Ronald Araujo, Inigo Martinez, and Pedri are out injured.
We’ll most likely continue to see Oriol Romeu in the center of the park with Pedri out. Regardless, the Osasuna vs Barcelona odds price visiting Barça at -155 to win Sunday’s match.
Match Analysis & Odds
After a midweek trip to Belgium, Osasuna hosts Barcelona on Sunday. They’ll be on short rest for this one and are +400 home underdogs. They’ll try to defeat Barcelona at home for the first time in over a decade but the Catalan club are -155 favorites. Osasuna +0.5, +1 displays even odds and they should only be missing Darko Brasanac for this one. The Osasuna vs Barcelona odds also price Barcelona at -0.5, and -1 at -120.
So far, Ferran Torres has been an impact sub for Xavi’s Barcelona. He’s scored in each of Barcelona’s last two matches even though he’s only played 34 minutes total so far this season. Most of Osasuna’s attention will be focused on Robert Lewandowski, though. Osasuna have conceded in each of their last four matches, in all competitions, and over 2.5 goals display -125 odds for this one.
Barcelona opened up the season with two clean sheets but Villarreal managed to open them up quite a few times last weekend. So, there could be opportunities for both sides here and three of the last four meetings have finished with three or more goals. A draw sits at +300 odds for Sunday’s game and two of Barça’s last four trips to Osasuna have ended all square.
For La Liga betting news, odds analysis, and more, visit Point Spreads Sports Magazine.
