Unionistas de Salamanca vs Barcelona prediction and betting tips on January 18, 2024
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Game Prediction
In Spain, the upcoming week will primarily focus on determining the quarter-finalists in the current cup competition. One of the matchups features a rather interesting clash between Unionistas de Salamanca and Barcelona. It's a rare occasion for the underdog to host stars from Catalonia - but will that be the extent of their achievements? The editorial team of the website provides a forecast and preview for this match on January 18, 2024.
Unionistas de Salamanca celebrated their first anniversary last season.
"Unionistas" is the successor of the almost similarly named club from Salamanca, which spent 12 years in La Liga, including the late 90s. Over the course of their appearances, they managed to climb from the sixth level of football to the third, but have remained there since 2017, showing modest results like a seventh-place finish in their group last season. Currently, they are hovering near the relegation zone, which is expected as the cup demands their attention. They defeated Hihon's Sporting and, in the Round of 16, eliminated Villarreal on penalties. Notably, both favorites were knocked out at their home stadium.
Barcelona is going through a challenging season.
The "Blaugrana" are the reigning champions of La Liga. However, defending such a status will be very difficult, given the strong competition from both Real Madrid and the resilient Girona. Barcelona often drops points themselves; they narrowly avoided sharing points with Las Palmas, securing a victory with a penalty in the final moments. The relief came in the Champions League, but it's somewhat embarrassing for a club of such stature to boast about reaching the knockout stage from a group that included Porto, the "homeless" Shakhtar, and debutants Antwerp. In the Saudi Arabia Super Cup, they convincingly defeated Osasuna 2-0 but lost without a fight in "El Clasico."
Previous matches
This is, of course, the first encounter between two teams of vastly different levels.
Free prediction for the Unionistas de Salamanca vs. Barcelona match on January 18:
The guests are clearly determined to make amends in the cup. A suitable bet here would be on "total over 3.0 goals" (odds - 1.666).