Saturday's La Liga and Bundesliga predictions and free football tips

Best bets

Real Madrid to beat Osasuna
Viaplay Sports 2, 8pm Saturday
2pts 3-4 general

Cologne draw no bet v Stuttgart
2.30pm Saturday
1pt 11-10 Betfair, Paddy Power

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Saturday preview

Real Madrid are out to 6-1 to win La Liga this season but they have the opportunity to narrow the gap between them and pacesetters Barcelona to only five points when they take on Osasuna on Saturday.

Los Blancos bulldozed their way past basement boys Elche 4-0 on Wednesday to trim back the deficit to eight points and they can edge closer to top spot this weekend before Barca play on Sunday.

Carlo Ancelotti's side did not enjoy the best start to 2023, dropping points in La Liga and losing the Spanish Super Cup final to Barcelona in Saudi Arabia.

But fresh from their Club World Cup final triumph over Al-Hilal and that confidence-boosting thrashing of Elche, they are back on the winning trail and, crucially, have Karim Benzema fit and firing again.

Osasuna are nestled in the mid-table positions with one eye on the European places but a lack of threat in the final third has let them down this season.

The club from Pamplona have scored only 19 times in 21 league fixtures this term and have netted only two goals in their last four La Liga matches against Elche, Atletico Madrid, Espanyol and Real Valladolid.

The club's top scorer in La Liga Chimy Avila has scored only once in the league since the turn of the year and they could be punished for their wastefulness in the final third by rejuvenated Real.

One of the most eye-catching results in the Bundesliga last weekend was Cologne's 3-0 victory over Eintracht Frankfurt and fans of the Billy Goats can have few complaints about their side's recent performances.

Cologne are yet to lose in the Bundesliga since returning from the winter break with that defeat of Frankfurt and a 7-1 mauling of Werder Bremen book-ending a run which has also featured draws with Bayern Munich, Schalke and Leipzig.

Turning draws into wins will be key if the club from North Rhine-Westphalia are to push for the European places but they should have enough in their locker to overcome Stuttgart on Saturday.

Defeat to Freiburg last time out was Stuttgart's third league loss on the spin, leaving them in the relegation zone in the Bundesliga and increasing the pressure on Bruno Labbadia, who has been at the club only since December.

Stuttgart have failed to win seven of their ten home games in the Bundesliga this term and Cologne are worth selecting in the draw-no-bet market with stakes returned in the event of a stalemate.

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