Real Betis vs Barcelona: preview, predictions and line-ups

Five wins in a row puts Barcelona comfortably at the top of the La Liga table, but if they want to stay there they cannot afford to drop points in their away clash against Real Betis on Saturday afternoon.

Barcelona played one of their best matches of the season in midweek and beat Atlético Madrid 3-1 at the Camp Nou. With the return of Pedri and Raphinha, Hansi Flick’s side are starting to solidify and hope their early season woes are a thing of the past.

Real Betis will be a tough challenge though. Manuel Pellegrini’s side are currently fifth in the table and are unbeaten in their last eight matches in all competitions. After winning the city derby against Sevilla, Los Verdiblancos will be motivated to defeat Barcelona at home in La Liga for the first time since the 2007-08 season.

The match will be played at Estadio La Cartuja given the ongoing renovation works at the Betis stadium. This means that Barcelona will play their first match at La Cartuja since beating Real Madrid in the Copa del Rey final last April.

Here isSports IllustratedIt is guide to this La Liga clash.

Real Betis vs. Barcelona head-to-head record (last five matches)

Current form (all competitions)

Manuel Pellegrini’s side are in fine form after victory over bitter rivals Sevilla and will be bolstered by the return of Antony after serving his one-match suspension in last weekend’s derby.

However, Betis will be without two key midfielders, Sofyan Amrabat and Isco, who were injured in a clash, as well as former Barcelona defender Héctor Bellerín.

Even without Bellerin, two former Barça players will be keen to impress on Saturday. Marc Bartra will command the Betis backline and Ez Abde could be a nightmare for Flick’s defense if they continue to allow a lot of space with their high line.

Former MLS star Cucho Hernández has had a promising start to his second season in Spain and will lead the line at La Cartuja.

Predicted line-up of Real Betis against Barcelona (4-2-3-1): Valleys; Ruibal, Bartra, Natan, Gomez; Rock, Altamira; Antoine, Fornals, Abdé; Hernandez.

Injuries to Dani Olmo and Fermín López will force Flick to deploy a player out of position to cover the attacking midfielder role. Raphinha appears a likely solution, with Marcus Rashford coming into the lineup in his usual spot on the left wing.

In midfield, Pedri and Frenkie de Jong could play their first match together since the Clásico at the end of October, reestablishing their partnership at the heart of Barcelona’s midfield.

Gerard Martín’s impressive recent emergence as a central defender earns him a fresh start, giving Eric García, who has played the most minutes of any Catalan player this season, a well-deserved rest.

Up front, Ferran Torres will likely lead the line after two unconvincing performances from Robert Lewandowski.

Barcelona predicted lineup against Real Betis (4-2-3-1): Garcia; Koundé, Cubarsi, Martín, Balde; De Jong, Pedri; Yamal, Raphinha, Rashford; Torres.

These two teams played an absolutely brilliant match when Barcelona visited Real Betis a season ago. Given the current form of both sides, a very similar scenario could be expected in Saturday’s encounter.

Barcelona have enough firepower to harm Betis’ defensive unit, but their backline is also likely to struggle against Pellegrini’s in-form attack.

The outcome of this match could very well come down to individual quality, with many players on the pitch capable of producing a moment of magic out of nowhere.

In the end, Barcelona could very well walk away with all three points in a hard-fought match that could even be decided in the final minutes.

Prediction: Real Betis 2–3 Barcelona

READ THE LATEST BARCELONA NEWS, TRANSFER RUMORS AND MORE