New Year's Eve's La Liga predictions including Barcelona vs. Espanyol

Barcelona vs. Espanyol (Saturday, 1.00pm)

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Barcelona will be looking to make it six victories in a row in Spain's top flight when they welcome Espanyol to Camp Nou for the Barcelona derby on Saturday afternoon.

Xavi's side are currently top of the La Liga table, two points clear of second-placed Real Madrid, while Espanyol occupy 16th position, just one point above the relegation zone.

We say: Barcelona 2-0 Espanyol

Barcelona have been excellent defensively this season, only conceding five times in 14 matches, while Espanyol have scored just 16 La Liga goals during the 2022-23 campaign. A home victory to nil seems the most likely outcome on Saturday, as Barcelona should have too much for their rivals in this contest.

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> How Barcelona could line up against Espanyol

> Barcelona injury, suspension list vs. Espanyol

Real Sociedad vs. Osasuna (Saturday, 3.15pm)

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Two teams who have enjoyed impressive starts to the 2022-23 campaign will lock horns in La Liga on Saturday afternoon, as Real Sociedad welcome Osasuna to Reale Arena.

The home side are currently third in the table, having picked up 26 points from their opening 14 matches, while Osasuna occupy seventh, boasting 23 points from their 14 league games this term.

We say: Real Sociedad 1-0 Osasuna

This has all of the makings of a very interesting match between two impressive teams. Osasuna are more than good enough to claim a strong result on Saturday, but with Real Sociedad having home advantage, we are just tipping the Basque outfit to shade a close contest at Reale Arena.

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Villarreal vs. Valencia (Saturday, 3.15pm)

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Both Villarreal and Valencia will be looking to make it back-to-back wins in Spain's top flight when they lock horns on Saturday afternoon.

Villarreal recorded a 1-0 victory over Espanyol in their last La Liga fixture before the campaign was halted for the World Cup, while Valencia impressively beat Real Betis 3-0 in their last league game.

We say: Villarreal 1-1 Valencia

As mentioned, there has not been a draw between these two sides since September 2018, with each of the last seven La Liga meetings producing a winner. However, we are struggling to separate them here, as Valencia will be full of confidence following their success over Real Betis before the campaign was halted.

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