Monaco vs Barcelona. Are there any favorites?

Monaco and Barcelona will meet on May 21 in a dispute for third place in the Euroleague 2022/23. The game will take place at the Zalgiris arena in Kaunas (Lithuania).

• Expert Predictions Analysis
• History of the confrontation
• Odds
• Game Totals Prediction

Our Expert Predictions & Analysis on Monaco vs Barcelona

Monaco

The club got into the Euroleague playoffs because they have Mike James. The entire basketball team is now reduced to a fairly simple style. The ball should be given to the American, and he is very likely to throw into the ring, and with the implementation he is almost always in order.

This tactic worked until the meeting with Olympiacos in the Final Four. The Greeks are a real basketball team, where excellent players are gathered who work together for the good of a common cause. There are bright leaders here (for example, Vezenkov), but if they are closed, then others appear. There is no such thing in Monaco, so the club is not fighting for gold, but is trying to take bronze. Either way, it's been a great season.

Monegasques have no time to reshape tactics, and there are no resources for this. If James stops pulling the blanket over himself in attack, then the team will simply sag. It remains to be hoped that Mike has strength left, and the mood has not deteriorated in the last match with Olya. The American has a bad temper, if he is not in a good mood, then the game will be handed over to the opponent cleanly.

Barcelona

This is a team with perhaps the best lineup in the Euroleague. She did not win the regular season, and gold medals now do not shine for her either. How did it happen? The wrong person is at the head of Barcelona. The Lithuanian mentor of the team cannot 100% control his wards. The Blue Garnets are able to win the Spanish championship without straining, but nothing more. The Euroleague is a tournament of a completely different level, and here the Catalans immediately begin very predictable troubles.

Now there is such an option that the bronze medals of the Euroleague can pass by the Catalans. On paper, Barcelona is better than Monaco, but this is not the decisive moment in this case. The opponent has Mike James. We need to neutralize it. If it works out, Barça will win. The plan sounds very simple. In practice, everything is difficult to implement, but you have to try. The Catalans have resources for this. The main thing is that Sarunas Jasikevicius does not cheat again.

History of the confrontation

In the regular season of the Euroleague 2022/23, the clubs sorted things out twice. Both times the success was on the side of the Catalans (80:70 in Spain and 69:63 in the territory of the Monegasques). Previously, the "blue garnet" took two more meetings in pairs. To date, these are all battles of teams. The first one took place in the fall of 2021.

Odds from download 1xbet

The favourites for this match, according to bookmakers, are the nominal visitors. Their success is priced at 1.48. The home team's victory is priced at 2.65. The odds on total under(160.5) at 1xbet are 1.9. Bets on total over(160.5) are multiplied by 1.9. Handicap 2(-5.5) is worth 1.9. Install the 1xbet app and place a bet on the favorite!

Game Totals Prediction

Barcelona are not giving away 100% of their opportunities, but here and now their current capabilities are enough to put Monaco (Win 2) out of their way, who are morally burned out due to their loss in the last match. The nominal visitors will work with an attacking bias - total more(160.5), doing their job this time very confidently.