Real Betis will be bidding to record their first win of the 2024-25 La Liga campaign when they travel to Mendizorrotza Stadium on Sunday evening to take on Alaves.
The Green and Whites played out a 1-1 draw with Girona in their season opener, while Alaves suffered a 2-1 loss to Celta Vigo in their first game of the new campaign.
Match preview
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Alaves had an outstanding 2023-24 La Liga campaign after being promoted from the second tier, finishing in 10th position in the table, which proved to be their highest final spot since 2017.
The Blue and Whites will have their eyes on another top-half finish this term, and they have been active during the summer market, bringing in nine new players, including Stoichkov and Asier Villalibre.
There have been 12 departures, meanwhile, including sizeable transfers for Javi Lopez and Ruben Duarte, so there is a fresh look to the squad this season, and it will be fascinating to see how the Basque side perform.
Luis Garcia's side took the lead in the 17th minute of their La Liga opener against Celta last weekend, but Williot Swedberg levelled the scores in the 66th minute before Iago Aspas won it for the Sky Blues late on.
Alaves are winless in their last six La Liga matches against Real Betis, but both league meetings between the sides during the 2023-24 campaign finished all square, including a 1-1 draw at Mendizorrotza Stadium.
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Real Betis, meanwhile, opened their 2024-25 La Liga campaign with a 1-1 draw against Girona; Marc Bartra sent Manuel Pellegrini's side ahead in the sixth minute, before the visitors netted a leveller in the second period.
The Seville outfit were in Conference League action against Kryvbas KR on Thursday evening, recording a 2-0 victory over the Ukrainian side in the first leg of their playoff encounter, with the La Liga team therefore in an excellent position to qualify ahead of the reverse fixture on August 29.
Real Betis' next La Liga game against Getafe has been postponed due to their European commitments, so their third game of the new domestic season will be against the champions Real Madrid on September 1.
The Green and Whites, who finished seventh in La Liga last season, have made eight signings this summer, with the biggest of those proving to be Marc Roca, who has arrived on a permanent basis from Leeds United.
Ayoze Perez, Willian Jose, Guido Rodriguez and Borja Iglesias are among those to have moved on, and it will be interesting to see whether this squad is capable of pushing for the top six in 2024-25.
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Team News
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Alaves were not missing any players for their season opener against Celta and have not reported any fresh concerns ahead of this match, so head coach Garcia could again have a full squad.
The manager is expected to resist the temptation to shuffle his pack, and it would not be a surprise to see the same XI take to the field, with Kike Garcia retaining his spot at centre-forward.
Hugo Novoa, Luis Rioja, Stoichkov and Villalibre are also pushing for starting roles, though, with Garcia having a number of big decisions to make when it comes to his team selection.
As for Real Betis, Cedric Bakambu is out until the start of next month with a muscular problem, while Isco remains a major doubt for the visitors due to an ankle issue.
Head coach Pellegrini make a number of changes to his side for the European affair on Thursday, but the likes of Roca, William Carvalho, Juanmi, Aitor Ruibal and Bartra should be back in the XI for this match.
Real Betis are currently short of options when it comes to the centre-forward spot in their side, and it would not be a surprise to see a new player arrive in that area before the end of the transfer window.
Alaves possible starting lineup:
Sivera; Vicente, Abqar, Tenaglia, Diarra; Guevara, Blanco; Romero, Guridi, Conechny; Kike Garcia
Real Betis possible starting lineup:
Silva; Sabaly, Bartra, Llorente, Perraud; Carvalho, Roca; Fornals, Fekir, Juanmi; Ruibal
We say: Alaves 1-2 Real Betis
Alaves will be the fresher of the two sides, but Thursday's European match could provide good momentum for Real Betis, and we are backing Pellegrini's outfit to edge a close match on Sunday in order to move onto four points in Spain's top flight.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Matt Law
