La Liga Preview: Thumbs up for Sociedad at the Coliseum

Sociedad are riding high, while Getafe have little left to play for

Five rounds of the season to go and Tobias Gourlay's been looking into who's keeping their eyes on the ball and who's already shirtless in Benidorm

Celta Vigo v Athletic Bilbao
Friday 20:00 (Live on Sky Sports Xtra)
Celta 2.588/5 Athletic 3.02/1 draw 3.55/2

Celta Vigo are in the relegation zone, but 15th-placed Osasuna are just three points ahead.

Athletic, who are 14th, have a seven-point cushion and Marcelo Bielsa would probably be quite happy to maintain the status quo for another week.

Celta will push harder for all three points and they might just get them.

Six of Celta's eight wins so far have come at Balaidos and the seven goals they've scored in five home games since Abel Resino took over say they can sneak past visitors who have scored just once or not at all in 10/11 away games.

Recommended Bet
Back Celta Vigo Draw No Bet @ 1.8810/11

Real Madrid v Valladolid
Saturday 19:00 (Live on Sky Sports 1)
Real 1.192/11 Valladolid 20.019/1 draw 8.615/2

Real Madrid are not completely out of the title race, but Bayern Munich are not among Barcelona's upcoming opponents and it seems unlikely the Catalans will give up all of their 11-point advantage.

Valladolid are not completely safe. Their remaining matches are against Barcelona and three teams fighting hard to avoid the drop, so a game against a Real side that is primarily focused on the Copa Del Rey final is a relatively appealing source of points.

Valladolid +2.0 & +2.5 is around even-money and pays something out if the visitors can stay within a couple of goals of their hosts.

Patrick Ebert is fit again, looked good against Sevilla last weekend and should not pass up the opportunity to perform on a bigger stage.

His presence lends weight to a Both Teams to Score bet, which has paid out in 7/9 at the Bernabeu and in 10/14 Valladolid away games.

Recommended Bet
Back Both Teams to Score @ 1.9620/21

Deportivo La Coruna v Atletico Madrid
Saturday 21:00 (Live on Sky Sports 1)
Deportivo 3.8514/5 Atletico 2.1411/10 draw 3.55/2

Depor's form is impressive - they are W4-D2-L0 since losing at Barcelona - but Jose Luis Oltra's free-scorers now go up against an Atletico team that has kept five straight clean sheets on the road.

Happily for Depor, Diego Simeone has the Copa del Rey to think about. To free up space in the diary, Atletico - like Real - must play another Liga fixture on Wednesday.

And all of this follows last week's money-spinning jaunt to Azerbaijan, so you might surmise that Atletico's focus is elsewhere.

Recommended Bet
Back Deportivo 0 & +0.5 @ 2.15n/a

Sevilla v Espanyol
Sunday 18:00 (Live on Sky Sports 2)
Sevilla 1.584/7 Espanyol 6.86/1 draw 4.47/2

Neither of these two has much to play for - the Europa League just doesn't appeal to overstretched squads like it used to.

Alvaro Negredo has scored nine of Sevilla's last 15 Liga goals and five of their last seven against Espanyol. He's notched at least once in 5/7 at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan, but can be profligate and will probably be odds-on To Score this weekend.

The team news we really want is about Sevilla's midfield. Defensive shield Gary Medel and Geoffrey Kondogbia are both rated doubtful. If they are both ruled out, we'll support the visitors.

Recommended Bet
Back Espanyol +1.0 @ 2.01/1

Barcelona v Real Betis
Sunday 20:00 (Live on Sky Sports 2)
Barcelona 1.251/4 Betis 14.5n/a draw 7.26/1

Betis have scored in all seven games they've played with the Big Two since returning to the top-flight at the start of last season.

Pepe Mel's team is on course for a place in the Europa League and should be up for their trip to the Camp Nou as usual.

The home side's state of mind is less clear, so we'll concentrate on the visitors - and Ruben Castro in particular.

The Betis striker has scored in 3/3 Liga games with Barca since his club's promotion and in 14/29 Liga appearances this season.

Recommended Bet
Back Ruben Castro To Score @ 5.04/1

Getafe v Real Sociedad
Monday 21:00 (Live on Sky Sports Xtra)
Getafe 4.03/1 Sociedad 2.0421/20 draw 3.814/5

Real Sociedad are unbeaten in 15 league games (W4-D3-L0 on the road) and winning the race for Spain's fourth Champions League spot.

With Malaga and Valencia still chasing them, they need to win. The same cannot be said of their hosts, who have lost three on the bounce, scored only once in their last three at the Coliseum and are destined for another forgettable mid-table finish.

Recommended Bet
Back Sociedad @ 2.0421/20