La Liga Weekend Preview for Every Game

It's matchday three in La Liga and Bleacher Report is here to give you a preview of every upcoming match in Spain.

The big two of Barcelona and Real Madrid will try not to let fatigue from a mid-week Supercopa cause them to drop points.

Atletico Madrid will also be struggling for full fitness after a 4-1 shelling of Chelsea in the UEFA Super Cup.

What follows is a brief preview of all 10 matches in La Liga as we enter September.

Celta Vigo vs. Osasuna

Start Time

Saturday September 1
10:00 AM EST

Previous Results

Real Sociedad 2-1 Celta

Osasuna 1-2 Barcelona

Preview

Both teams are coming off a close loss, but Osasuna should feel more confident after playing Barcelona close for over 70 minutes.

The visitors will be favored, but Vigo have played two close matches and I expect another close match in this one, as both teams will be looking for their first points of the season.

Players to Watch

Celta—Iago Aspas, Javi Varas

Osasuna—Andres Fernandez, Alvaro Cejudo

Zaragoza vs. Malaga

Start Time

Saturday September 1
12:00 PM EST

Previous Results

Espanyol 1-2 Zaragoza

Malaga 1-1 Mallorca

Preview

Last week, Zaragoza recalled the spirit of last season's second half with a comeback victory against Espanyol in Barcelona.

Malaga are coming in high off clinching a spot int he Champions League, but those extra fixtures may already start to take a toll on the troubled side.

Players to Watch

Zaragoza—Roberto, Apoño

Malaga—Isco, Martin Demichelis

Deportivo La Coruña vs. Getafe

Start Time

Saturday September 1
2:00 PM EST

Previous Results

Valencia 3-3 Deportivo

Getafe 2-1

Preview

Deportivo was bossed by Valencia for most of the first half last week, but then battled back from two goals down to earn a hard-fought draw.

Getafe's spirits will be even higher after upsetting the reigning champs in Madrid last Sunday.

This could be the first chance for many casual fans to see Paco Alcacer in action if he plays his first match in a Getafe shirt this weekend.

Players to Watch

Deportivo—Nelson Oliveira, Carlos Marchena

Getafe—Paco Alcacer, Xavi Torres

Saturday Headliner: Mallorca vs. Real Sociedad

Start Time

Saturday September 1
4:00 PM EST

Previous Results

Espanyol 1-2 Mallorca

Real Sociedad 2-1 Celta Vigo

Preview

This is one of my Match of the Day for Saturday.

It features two teams who had solid transfer windows and look to build upon last season's success.

Both Mallorca and their Basque opponents will be targeting Europa League qualification this season, and this match could end up as a tie-breaker when the season ends.

Players to Watch

Mallorca—Gio dos Santos, Dudu Aouate

Real Sociedad—Gonzalo Castro, Antoine Griezmann

Rayo Vallecano vs. Sevilla

Start Time

Sunday September 2
6:00 AM EST

Previous Results

Real Betis 1-2 Rayo Vallecano

Granada 1-1 Sevilla

Preview

This is why the first month of the season is so enjoyable. We may be just three weeks in, but seeing Rayo sitting in third place with all six points is a sight to see.

This season Rayo are one of the early surprises, but will face their toughest test yet against Jesus Navas and Sevilla.

The last time these two teams met, Navas ran riot and managed three assists in a 5-2 blowout.

Players to Watch

Rayo Vallecano—Javi Fuego, Lass Bangoura

Sevilla—Jesus Navas, Diego Lopez

Athletic Bilbao vs. Valladolid

Start Time

Sunday September 2
10:00 AM EST

Previous Results

Atletico Madrid 4-0 Athletic Bilbao

Valladolid 2-0 Levante

Preview

Poor Athletic Club. The start of this season hasn't been met with the club's usual success.

The Basques are 0-2 after giving up nine goals in their opening two matches. Now, they'll welcome newly promoted Valladolid to San Mames. The visitors have won their first two matches.

It is still very early, but if Bilbao want any shot at playing in Europe next season, they need to get their season on track immediately and it should start this weekend.

Having Fernando Llorente in the lineup will surely help Los Leones.

Players to Watch

Athletic Bilbao—Iker Muniain, Fernando Llorente

Valladolid—Patrick Ebert, Victor Perez

Levante vs. Espanyol

Start Time

Sunday September 2
12:00 PM EST

Previous Results

Valladolid 2-0 Levante

Espanyol 1-2 Zaragoza

Preview

This bout will be a good one to follow. Espanyol have made a few nice pickups this summer and have made it clear that they're targeting European qualification this summer.

The Barcelona side has failed to get any points thus far, while Levante opened strong by playing Atletico Madrid to a draw.

This match will be Simao's first in blue and white so Espanyol fans are eager to see what he can bring to the club.

Players to Watch

Levante—Jose Barkero, Vicente Iborra

Espanyol—Simao, Verdu

Real Madrid vs. Granada

Start Time

Sunday September 2
1:50 PM EST

Previous Results

Getafe 2-1 Real Madrid

Granada 1-1 Sevilla

Preview

The last time these two teams played, Granada were arguably jobbed out of a fair chance to get points from the champs.

At the time, few people were talking about how suspect the referees were, especially at the end of the match. If the game had ended so suddenly for Real Madrid, boss Jose Mourinho would still be talking of conspiracy.

Granada have made a lot of improvements this summer and could become another stumbling block for Los Merengues as they target their first win of the season.

Players to Watch

Real Madrid—Luka Modric, Pepe

Granada—Irney, Guiherme Siqueira

Sunday Headliner: Barcelona vs. Valencia

Start Time

Sunday September 2
3:30 PM EST

Previous Results

Osasuna 1-2 Barcelona

Valencia 3-3 Deportivo

Preview

This is certainly the biggest match of the weekend. Valencia will try to match their feat from week one by beating the second of Spain's two giants.

Please see my preview for this match and also follow my live coverage of the event.

Players to Watch

Barcelona—Alex Song, Jordi Alba

Valencia—Roberto Soldado, Joao Pereira

Postponed: Atlético Madrid vs. Real Betis

Start Time

Postponed

Previous Results

Atletico Madrid 4-0 Athletic Bilbao

Real Betis 1-2 Rayo Vallecano

Preview

This match has been postponed and will be played at a date yet to be determined.

Atletico Madrid played the UEFA Super Cup against Chelsea on Friday, and with international matches coming up next week, the league thought it would be best to move the match back.

Follow @MichaelCernaBR