Barcelona vs Real Betis

Barcelona’s La Liga title defense continues at Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companysagainst Real Betis.

Sharing the spoils with perennial relegation fighters Getafe in a dismal 0-0 draw on the opening weekend did nothing to knock reigning champions Barcelona off their perch. Xavi Hernandez’s men have since racked up three consecutive La Liga victories via a combined score of 8-4, courtesy of the goals netted beyond the 70th minute. The ‘Blaugrana’ will hope to avoid late drama here and maintain their eye-catching record of 17 wins in their last 20 La Liga meetings with Betis (D1, L2). Despite being stripped of the privilege of playing at Camp Nou due to ongoing reconstruction, Barcelona could find that even comforting, knowing they’ve lost twice in their last five top-flight H2Hs at their iconic venue (W3). With four of those five matches featuring 4+ goals, this could be a high-scoring contest.

Meanwhile, Real Betis eked out a narrow 1-0 home win over Rayo Vallecano on the eve of the international break to arrest a two-game winless league run (D1, L1), keeping their second clean sheet in three matches in the process. Manuel Pellegrini’s men have blown hot and cold on their opening two La Liga travels (W1, L1), but high scoring has been a common theme, with each of those two games producing over 2.5 goals and both teams on the scoresheet. But Pellegrini can hardly relish this trip, considering he has suffered more managerial defeats against Barcelona than any other side (W5, D4, L24). But he was the mastermind behind Betis’ unexpected 1-0 win at Camp Nou in December 2021, so nothing’s lost yet for ‘Los Verdiblancos.’