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The new Spanish football season begins on Sunday with the Super Cup. The match pits together the previous season’s winners of La Liga betting and the Copa del Rey but as Barcelona won both competitions, they will play the losing Copa del Rey finalists, Sevilla.

Given that Sevilla have lost each of their last six matches against Barcelona you’d think they would welcome the decision to change the format of the Spanish Super Cup.

Sevilla are actually very angry about the decision to turn the Super Cup from a home and away tie to a one off match which rather strangely is to be held in Morocco.

A statement from the club went as far as to suggest that the decision was made specifically for Barcelona’s benefit but that they would fulfil the fixture despite believing the decision to be “unjust”.

That adds an extra layer of intrigue to the Super Cup but in our Barcelona v Sevilla betting tips we’re not expecting anything other than a comfortable win for the league champions.

Barcelona to Put the Noise Behind Them

As well as the controversy around the change in format, Barcelona have another problem ahead of the Super Cup.

Spanish rules dictate that teams can have a maximum of three non-EU citizens in their squad. Ernesto Valverde, however, is banking on being able to play Arthur, Malcom, Arturo Vidal and Phillipe Coutinho this season.

The solution is for Coutinho to get a Portuguese passport and the necessary paperwork has been with the authorities for some time but Sunday’s match may come too soon.

How Much Resistance Can Sevilla Muster?

Despite reaching the final of the Copa del Rey and the semi-finals of the Champions League for the first time, Vincenzo Montella was sacked as manager in April last year.

The task, therefore, is clear for Pablo Machin. He must improve on Sevilla’s seventh place finish from last season whilst ensuring they retain their excellent cup form.

That’s not going to be easy and we think that Machin’s time at the club is going to start, not just with a defeat, but potentially with a big one.

There are a couple of betting options to make the most of Barcelona sending out a message to the competition by securing a big win.

First, have a bet on Barcelona winning and there being over 3.5 goals at 11/5 with Ladbrokes. That will see a payout either if Barca win by a big margin and also if Sevilla are able to score a goal or two themselves.

Heading to the handicap betting markets is another potential route to profit. The best option looks to be Barcelona -2 goals which Betfred are quoting 10/3 about.

Messi to Put Miserable World Cup Behind Him

Argentina headed to the World Cup in Russia with a very strong side. Unfortunately, they combined to play like much less than the sum of their parts.

Lionel Messi appeared almost desperate to drag Argentina forwards at times but he was unable to do enough. Messi will be delighted to return to action for Barcelona and could hit the ground running by scoring two or more goals against Sevilla at 9/5 with Betfair.