Sports Mole previews Sunday’s La Liga clash between Real Betis and Athletic Bilbao, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.
Athletic Bilbao will be aiming to stretch their unbeaten run in La Liga to 13 matches when they head to Real Betis on Sunday night.
The Lions have been one of the standout teams in Spain’s top flight this season, picking up 40 points from 21 matches to sit fourth in the La Liga table, while Real Betis are 10th, only two points behind sixth-placed Mallorca in the battle for Europe.
Match preview
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Real Betis boast a record of seven wins, seven draws and seven defeats from their 21 La Liga matches this season, with a total of 28 points leaving them in 10th spot in the table, only two points behind sixth-placed Mallorca.
The Green and Whites will enter this clash off the back of a 1-0 victory over Mallorca, with Cedric Bakambu coming up with a last-gasp winner for Manuel Pellegrini‘s side, who brought a three-game losing run into that contest.
Real Betis have advanced in the Conference League, with Gent their opponents in the next round over two legs next month, and they have two more league games against Athletic and Celta Vigo before the first leg in Belgium on February 12.
Pellegrini’s team have been solid in front of their own supporters this season, picking up 16 points from 10 matches, but Athletic have been impressive on their travels, collecting 18 points from their 10 league fixtures away from home.
Real Betis picked up a point in a 1-1 draw with Athletic earlier this season, while they were 3-1 winners over the Lions when the two teams locked horns for the corresponding fixture in August 2023.
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Athletic are outside contenders for the La Liga title at this stage of proceedings, with a total of 40 points from 21 matches leaving them in fourth spot in the table, nine points behind the leaders Real Madrid.
Ernesto Valverde‘s side are only two points behind third-placed Barcelona, while they sit six clear of Villarreal in fifth, with Athletic winning 11, drawing seven and losing three of their 21 league games this term.
The Lions are on a 12-game unbeaten run in the league, with their last defeat coming against Girona at the start of October, but they were held to a goalless draw by Leganes on Sunday.
Athletic were back to winning ways in the Europa League on Thursday night, though, recording a 3-1 victory over Viktoria Plzen, with the result seeing them claim second in the overall table, level on 19 points with Lazio.
Valverde’s team are among the favourites to win the European competition this season, while they are in an excellent spot when it comes to claiming a top-four finish in La Liga, so it could be a famous campaign for the Basque club.
Real Betis La Liga form:
Real Betis form (all competitions):
Athletic Bilbao La Liga form:
Athletic Bilbao form (all competitions):
Team News
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Real Betis will welcome Romain Perraud back into their squad this weekend following a suspension, but Ezequiel Avila, Hector Bellerin and William Carvalho remain on the sidelines through injury.
The hosts also have a number of other fitness doubts, with Iker Losada, Ricardo Rodriguez, Marc Bartra, Aitor Ruibal, Giovani Lo Celso and Youssouf Sabaly all needing to be assessed before final decisions can be made.
Perraud is likely to come back into the XI, but it could otherwise be the same side that started against Mallorca, with Pellegrini unlikely to have many options for change due to the long list of absentees.
As for Athletic, Inigo Ruiz de Galarreta is a doubt due to an injury problem, while Alex Berenguer will need to be assessed due to the problem which forced him off the field in the Europa League.
Unai Simon will be back between the sticks, while Adama Boiro, Andoni Gorosabel and Mikel Vesga are likely to earn recalls on Sunday.
Should Berenguer be unavailable, then it is likely that Oihan Sancet will come into the starting side for the visitors, while there will once again be starts for Nico Williams and Inaki Williams.
Real Betis possible starting lineup:
Adrian; Ortiz, Llorente, Natan, Perraud; Cardoso, Roca; J Rodriguez, Isco, Ezzalzouli; Roque
Athletic Bilbao possible starting lineup:
Simon; Gorosabel, Vivian, Yeray, Boiro; Vesga, Jauregizar; I Williams, Sancet, N Williams; Guruzeta
We say: Real Betis 1-2 Athletic Bilbao
This is a really tricky match to call, especially as Real Betis will be the fresher of the two sides – the hosts are set to be without a number of key players on Sunday, though, and we can see a talented Athletic outfit navigating their way to all three points.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
