Kevin Hatchard's European Tips: Madrid star to light up El Clasico | OneFootball

European Football Tips

This week's game features El Clasico and Napoli v Inter

After picking up three winners from four selections last weekend, Kevin Hatchard's back with another quartet of picks from the continent's biggest games...

Football... Only Bettor. Listen to the latest episode now.

Sunday 26 October, 15:15Live on Premier Sports

Last season, Barcelona consistently got the better of their old foes Real Madrid, beating them four times across three competitions. They beat Los Merengues home and away in the league, overcame them in the Spanish Super Cup and then won a thrilling Copa del Rey final between the two biggest clubs in Spain.

Madrid have revenge in their sights, and know a win on Sunday afternoon would inflate the gap between the clubs in La Liga to five points. Xabi Alonso's team have won all but one of their competitive matches this term, although that failure was a notable one, as they were absolutely hammered 5-2 at Atletico Madrid in the capital city derby.

Barcelona did a domestic treble last term, but a recent home defeat against a depleted PSG in the Champions League was a slight reality check, and concerns continue about the high defensive line. Even limited teams like Girona are creating huge chances by getting in behind, and midfield ace Pedri remarked recently that Barca are failing to make the system work because they aren't applying enough pressure to the man on the ball.

The key to this edition of El Clasico could be the performance of Kylian Mbappé. The France captain is right up there with Erling Haaland and Harry Kane when it comes to the world's best strikers, and it's worth noting that he has scored in his last three meetings with Barca, even scoring a hat-trick in a 4-3 defeat in May.

Overall, Mbappé has 15 goals in 12 games across the league and the Champions League this season, and I'll back him to score and have two shots on target on the Bet Builder at 21/20. In 11 of his last 15 games for club and country, the former PSG star has had at least two shots on target, and I think he'll have a field day against this high line.

Barca simply don't operate the offside trap as effectively as they did when Inigo Martinez was marshalling the back four, and his move to Saudi Arabia has proven costly for the Catalans. Mbappé can at least score in arguably the biggest club clash in world football, just as he has in its last three editions.

Napoli v Inter - Star striker to rise to the occasion

Saturday 25 October, 17:00Live on DAZN and TNT Sports

It was these two Italian giants that fought for the Scudetto at the end of last season, and it was Napoli and Antonio Conte who came out on top, clinching the league title on the final day of last season. This time around, it appears both will be in the pack again, although it's been a really tough week for Napoli.

Conte's men lost 1-0 at Torino last weekend, as former Partenopei striker Gio Simeone netted the only goal of the game. Then things went from bad to worse, as Napoli were demolished 6-2 at PSV in the Champions League, with Conte hinting that the club's extensive summer transfer business has upset the balance of the squad.

Inter have had a rather better time of it. They secured an impressive 1-0 win at Roma in Serie A, and then they ran out 4-0 victors at Union SG in the Champions League. The Nerazzurri have now won seven games on the bounce in all competitions, and coach Christian Chivu has overcome a sticky start to his tenure.

As is so often the case, Lautaro Martinez has been a big part of that success. The World Cup winner has netted nine goals in 13 games for club and country, and he scored in midweek. We can get odds of 2/1 for the Argentina international to score at any time, and that seems a big price.

Borussia Mönchengladbach v Bayern Munich - Bavarians to run riot

Saturday 25 October, 17:30Live on Sky Sports

It's a great time to be a Bayern Munich fan. The German champions have made their best ever start to a season, winning their first 12 competitive matches of the campaign. Popular coach Vincent Kompany has just signed a contract extension, Harry Kane is playing arguably the best football of his career, and the team is five points clear at the top of the Bundesliga.

The picture at Bayern's traditional rivals Gladbach could hardly be more different. This season they have parted company with their coach and their sporting director, and they are the only team in the Bundesliga without a win. Last weekend they were particularly dreadful at defending set plays, as they slipped to a 3-1 loss at Union Berlin. The nadir of their season came last month, as they fell 6-0 behind against Eintracht Frankfurt, before eventually losing 6-4.

Bayern have scored four goals or more in six of their 12 competitive matches, and I fancy going for Any Other Away Win in the Correct Score market at 2.7. If Bayern score four goals and win the game, we get a winner.

Alternatively, you could back Luis Diaz to score at evens - the Colombian has scored in two of his last three Bayern games, and has looked razor-sharp since joining from Liverpool. He should have scored in Der Klassiker last weekend, and got into good scoring positions time and time again.

Recommended bets