La Liga Matchday 2 preview: Barca’s first match at the Montjuic, intriguing Real Betis vs Atletico Madrid

Following a fun opening weekend of the new La Liga season, Matchday 2 is just around the corner and there are some very intriguing fixtures on the schedule. Both Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid will be in Andalusia for tough away games against Almeria and Real Betis respectively, while Barcelona will play the first official match at their temporary home of the Estadi Olimpic, when they take on Cadiz .

The very first game of the round will take place on a sunny Friday evening in the Balearic Islands, when Mallorca meet Villarreal . This will be a homecoming for Sergi Darder, the skilful midfielder who was born on the island and who has just signed with Los Bermellones . Darder already provided an assist as Mallorca started the season with a draw at Las Palmas , and now he’ll look to make an impact when taking on Villarreal at the Estadi Mallorca Son Moix.

The second fixture of Friday takes place in another Mediterranean city, as Valencia face Las Palmas . It was a perfect start for Ruben Baraja and his young squad as they achieved a win on opening weekend, and now Los Che will search for another three points against the newly promoted side. 

Three fixtures will be held on Saturday and the first is Real Sociedad vs  Celta . Neither side was able to win on opening weekend, so Mikel Oyarzabal and Iago Aspas will lead their squads into this contest at the Reale Arena with maximum motivation. 

Later on Saturday evening, Real Madrid will aim to make it two wins from two when they travel to take on Almeria on the south coast. Curiously, Los Blancos will come up against their academy graduate Sergio Arribas, who just completed a transfer from the capital city side to Almería .