Barcelona vs Valencia Prediction: Both teams to score on Sunday night

Barcelona dropped points last time out but they'll be looking to get back on track this Sunday night as they welcome in Valencia. Alas, it won't be at the revamped Camp Nou as the safety certificate still hasn't been granted. Premier Sports 1 from 20:00 for this La Liga clash.

Our La Liga Betting Expert previews this one and gives us his top two bets for the match. You can check out his Barcelona vs Valencia Predictions below...

Barcelona play their first home game of the season on Sunday against Valencia. This was scheduled to be the day of their big return to Camp Nou after more than two years. However, fresh delays to construction work have prevented that. 

Given the chaotic nature of life off the pitch at this football club, it's not exactly a surprise that things haven't gone to plan. With a concert taking place at the Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys, their home for the last two seasons, this fixture will now take place at Barça's B-team ground, the 6,000-capacity Estadi Johan Cruyff. The venue was only confirmed earlier this week. 

While the surroundings will be unusual, Hansi Flick will still expect his squad to take care of business. They've made a solid start to the campaign, with seven points from three road games, although they could only draw 1-1 against Rayo Vallecano last time out. 

That was a sub-par performance from the defending champions. Their only goal came via a controversial penalty, awarded while VAR was not working inside the Estadio de Vallecas. Rayo caused problems throughout the 90 minutes, and were good value for at least a point. 

The main conundrum for Flick right now seems to be the centre of his defence. Iñigo Martínez and Pau Cubarsí formed a strong partnership last term, but with the former having since departed, there is much less clarity in that department. Eric García and Andreas Christensen started in Vallecas, with fresh changes possible here. 

The home boss must also decide on whether to stick with Ferran Torres up top. The 25-year-old has already scored twice in La Liga this term, and was on target for Spain in their impressive 6-0 rout of Turkey last weekend, with Pedri also scoring twice in that match. 

Barcelona have happy recent memories of this particular fixture. They've already faced Valencia twice in 2025, registering 7-1 and 5-0 victories. Those two games both took place following the appointment of Carlos Corberán at Mestalla last winter, and rank as the darkest days of the 42-year-old's reign so far. 

Overall, the ex-West Brom boss has had a positive impact. His arrival sparked an immediate upturn in their fortunes, with Los Che ultimately cruising to survival, and a 12th-place finish in La Liga 2024/25. 

Corberán has been forced to rebuild this summer, following the departures of the likes of Giorgi Mamardashvili, Enzo Barrenechea and Cristhian Mosquera. His team looks weaker at the back now, but there are more attacking options in this squad, following the arrivals of Arnaut Danjuma, Dani Raba and Lucas Beltrán. 

Danjuma was on target last time out, as Valencia claimed their first victory of the season, with a 3-0 home triumph over Getafe. However, they did only record seven shots in that game, while their xG tally was just 1.08. 

They'll need to find an extra gear on Sunday if they're to give this free-scoring Barcelona side a run for their money. 

Team News: 

There are a number of injury problems for the hosts heading into this fixture. Lamine Yamal, Gavi, Frenkie de Jong and Alejandro Balde have all been ruled out, and will join Marc-André ter Stegen on the sidelines. 

Gerard Martín is expected to get the nod at left-back as a result of Balde's injury, while Marcus Rashford stands a good chance of making his second competitive start in a Blaugrana shirt. Flick must also decide whether or not to recall the fit-again Robert Lewandowski up front, with the Polish striker having clocked up only 26 minutes so far in La Liga. 

There are no such problems for the visitors, with Corberán expected to have a full squad to choose from. Having conceded seven on their last trip to Barcelona in January, Valencia may line up with a back five. Danjuma could operate as a lone striker, although he should get some support from winger Diego López. 

Match Odds: 

Barcelona are the firm favourites at 2/9 to win in front of a small crowd at the Estadi Johan Cruyff. You can back the visitors to spring a surprise and claim all three points at 10/1, while the Draw is priced at 11/2. 

Punters will need to weigh up how badly the hosts will be impacted by the absence of Yamal. If you're still expecting them to fire in the final third, you can back Barça to score over 2.5 goals at 8/11. They are also priced at 11/8 to win both halves. 

Alternatively, Valencia are on offer at 23/20 with a +2.00 Handicap. You can back the visitors to score over 0.5 goals at 4/6, while Los Che are priced at 10/3 to win either half. 

With Rashford in line to at least see more meaningful action in this game, you can back the Englishman to score anytime at 11/10, while Raphinha is on offer at 19/20 in the same market. Ferran is priced at 9/10 to continue his bright start to the season with another goal.

You can bet on this match via our Barcelona vs Valencia Odds page on the main betfred.com website with all the latest prices and full betting markets.

Bet 1 - Both teams to score @ 4/5 

Barcelona's high line has been breached on a number of occasions so far this season, and it's looked a little less organised, with more uncertainty in central defence now than was the case last term. Valencia have enough pace in their team to mount some meaningful counter-attacks and potentially get on the scoresheet. 

They're still likely to spend most of the 90 minutes in their own half and under pressure, though. Having lost their first-choice keeper and best defender in the summer, it's hard to see them keeping the Spanish champions out for long, and I'm backing Both teams to score at 4/5. 

Bet 2 - Barcelona to have over 7.5 corners @ 5/6 

Having conceded 12 goals in two meetings with Barça so far, Corberán will surely try something different here. He's likely to go with three centre-backs, and we may see the visitors drop very deep at times, and look to defend in a more compact fashion. 

That should create a situation where the home team dominates the play, and they're likely to win a lot of set pieces. Flick's side won 14 corners in the corresponding fixture last term, when they netted four times in the opening 24 minutes. They've also had at least 10 corners in each of their last three home league games. 

Given that, I'm backing Barcelona to have over 7.5 corners in this game at 5/6. 

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