Real Betis will be aiming to bounce back from successive defeats when they host Alaves in La Liga on Saturday evening.
The home side, who are 10th in the La Liga table, were on the end of a 5-1 thumping by Barcelona in the last-16 stage of the Copa del Rey on Wednesday night, while 17th-placed Alaves will enter the contest off the back of a 1-0 home defeat to Girona in La Liga last weekend.
Match preview
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Real Betis boast a record of six wins, seven draws and six defeats from their 19 league matches this season, with a total of 25 points leaving them in 10th position in the table, three points behind seventh-placed Real Sociedad.
Consistency has been a problem for Manuel Pellegrini's side this term, but they are only five points off the European spots ahead of league matches against Alaves and Mallorca to end the month.
The Green and Whites have won four, drawn four and lost one of their nine home league fixtures this term, and they will be welcoming an Alaves outfit with just one away victory to their name in Spain's top flight during the 2024-25 campaign.
Real Betis have lost their last two games, though, going down 1-0 to struggling Real Valladolid in La Liga last weekend, before suffering a 5-1 defeat to Barcelona in the last-16 stage of the Copa del Rey on Wednesday night.
Each of the last three La Liga games between these two sides have finished level, but Real Betis are unbeaten against Saturday's opponents in Spain's top flight since July 2020, which is a run of seven games.
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Alaves finished 10th in La Liga last season, which represented an excellent campaign on their return to the top flight, but it has been a difficult first half of the 2024-25 campaign for the Basque outfit.
A record of four wins, five draws and 10 defeats from 19 matches has left them with 17 points, which is only enough for 17th spot, just one point above 18th-placed Espanyol on the same number of games.
Eduardo Coudet's side drew four straight league games against Leganes, Osasuna, Athletic Bilbao and Valencia at the end of 2024, before opening 2025 with a 1-0 home defeat to Girona.
Alaves have not been victorious in La Liga since a 1-0 success over Mallorca at the start of November, and their struggles when it comes to winning matches is a real concern at such an important stage of the season.
Team News
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Real Betis will definitely be without the services of Marc Roca, Hector Bellerin and William Carvalho this weekend, while Rui Silva, Giovani Lo Celso and Ezequiel Avila are all doubts for the Seville outfit.
Head coach Pellegrini is set to introduce Vitor Roque back into a league XI, with the 19-year-old on the scoresheet against his parent club Barcelona in the Copa del Rey on Wednesday, while he has managed four top-flight goals this term.
Juanmi is expected to keep his spot, but there will be alterations from the Copa del Rey fixture, with Youssouf Sabaly, Ricardo Rodriguez and Abde Ezzalzouli all in line for spots in the XI.
As for Alaves, Antonio Sivera is a doubt due to a hand injury, but the visitors are otherwise in strong shape, with Carlos Martin and Joan Jordan expected to be fit despite being taken off in the first half of the team's last match.
Having been knocked out of the Copa del Rey at the start of December, the Basque outfit have not taken to the field since their 1-0 home defeat to Girona, and the squad could be boosted by the returns of Luka Romero and Santiago Mourino.
Kike Garcia has come up with five La Liga goals this season, and the 35-year-old is again expected to operate in the final third of the field, while there should also be an attacking role for Jon Guridi.
Real Betis possible starting lineup:
Vieites; Sabaly, Llorente, Natan, Rodriguez; Altimira, Cardoso; Juanmi, Isco, Ezzalzouli; Roque
Alaves possible starting lineup:
Owono; Tenaglia, Abqar, Diarra, M Sanchez; Vicente, Jordan, Blanco, Martin; Guridi, Garcia
We say: Real Betis 2-1 Alaves
The last three La Liga matches between these two sides have finished level, including goalless draws in their last two outings; we are expecting this to be close in terms of the scoreline, but Real Betis' strong home record, coupled with Alaves' struggles on their travels, should mean that Pellegrini's side pick up all three points.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Matt Law
