Real Betis will be aiming to stretch their unbeaten run in all competitions to eight matches when they resume their La Liga campaign with a trip to Real Valladolid on Saturday afternoon.
The visitors are currently ninth in the La Liga table, five points behind fifth-placed Villarreal, while Real Valladolid are at the bottom of the division, picking up only 12 points from their opening 18 matches of the campaign.
Match preview
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Real Valladolid boast a record of three wins, three draws and 12 defeats from their 18 La Liga matches this season, with a total of 12 points leaving them at the bottom of the division, four points from the safety of 17th position.
Diego Cocca has had a tough start to his time in charge of the club, losing 3-0 to Girona in La Liga on December 20, before suffering a shock 3-2 defeat to third-tier outfit Ourense in the last-32 stage of the Copa del Rey last time out.
Real Valladolid have only picked up nine points from their nine home league matches this season, scoring just six times in the process, which is a real concern heading towards the final months of the campaign.
The White and Violets secured promotion back to La Liga for the current season after finishing second in the 2023-24 Segunda Division, and they are bidding to make it successive campaigns at this level for the first time since 2020-21.
There is still a lot of football to be played before the end of the season, and Cocca's team will follow this contest with a huge fixture against fellow strugglers Espanyol on January 17.
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Real Betis, meanwhile, booked their spot in the last-16 stage of the Copa del Rey courtesy of a 1-0 success over Huesca last time out, and they have been rewarded with a clash against Barcelona next week.
Manuel Pellegrini's side are in strong form, going unbeaten in their last seven games across three separate competitions - La Liga, Copa del Rey and the Conference League - so they will enter this weekend's clash full of confidence.
The Green and Whites have picked up five points from their last three league matches, beating Villarreal either side of draws with Barcelona and Rayo Vallecano, and they sit in ninth position in Spain's top flight.
Real Betis have 25 points to show from their 18 league matches this season, which has left them level on points with seventh-placed Real Sociedad and five points from Villarreal in fifth position.
Pellegrini's team have found it difficult to show their best form on their travels this season, though, only collecting nine points from nine matches, scoring just eight times in the process.
Team News
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Real Valladolid are once again expected to be without the services of Marcos de Sousa and Mamadou Sylla due to injury, while Juanmi Latasa is suspended, but Kike Perez will be available after serving a ban of his own.
Perez started against Ourense in the Copa del Rey last time out and will now return to a league XI, while there will be wholesale changes from the cup fixture, with Javi Sanchez, Juma Bah, Ivan Sanchez and Anuar Tuhami set to be among those introduced.
Raul Moro has scored four times and registered two assists in 18 appearances for Real Valladolid this season, and there should also be a role in the final third of the field for the in-demand attacker.
As for Real Betis, Rui Silva, Marc Roca, Hector Bellerin and William Carvalho are out of the contest due to injury problems, but Ezequiel Avila is available again after serving a suspension.
Head coach Pellegrini selected a strong side against Huesca in the Copa del Rey, with Isco on the scoresheet, and the experienced attacker is set for another start this weekend, having seemingly now fully overcome the broken fibula which kept him out in the opening months of the season.
On-loan Barcelona attacker Vitor Roque is the number one pick through the middle for the Seville outfit at this moment in time, and he is again set to lead the line for the Green and Whites on Saturday afternoon.
Real Valladolid possible starting lineup:
Hein; Rosa, Bah, J Sanchez, Comert, Torres; Sanchez, Juric, Perez; Moro, Tuhami
Real Betis possible starting lineup:
Vieites; Sabaly, Bartra, Llorente, Perraud; Cardoso, Altimira; Lo Celso, Isco, Ezzalzouli; Roque
We say: Real Valladolid 0-1 Real Betis
Real Valladolid have just six home goals to their name in La Liga this season, while Real Betis have only managed eight on their travels; it is therefore difficult to predict a high-scoring affair, with a draw certainly a possibility, but we just have a feeling that the visitors will be able to navigate their way to all three points on Saturday afternoon.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Matt Law
