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Real Betis logo
La Liga | Gameweek 28
Mar 13, 2022 at 3.15pm UK
Estadio Benito Villamarin
Athletic Bilbao logo

Real Betis
1 - 0
Athletic Bilbao

Iglesias (20')
Pezzella (25'), Miranda (28'), Ruibal (76'), Canales (80')
Fekir (80')
FT(HT: 1-0)

Berchiche (8'), Berenguer (16'), Williams (77'), de Marcos (80'), Sancet (80')

Preview: Real Betis vs. Athletic Bilbao - prediction, team news, lineups

Sports Mole previews Sunday's La Liga clash between Real Betis and Athletic Bilbao, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.

Arguably the weekend's standout clash in La Liga will take place at the Estadio Benito Villamarin on Sunday, as Real Betis entertain Athletic Bilbao.

Back-to-back defeats have seen the hosts drop out of the top four of the league table, while their visitors remain eighth, in hot pursuit of a place in the top six.


Match preview

Real Betis coach Manuel Pellegrini reacts on March 9, 2022© Reuters

Real Betis enjoyed a particularly strong first half to the La Liga season, establishing themselves in the top three behind Real Madrid and Sevilla as they earned 33 points from their opening 17 games.

Manuel Pellegrini's side have since seen their grip on the top four weaken, though, as a result of a dip in their form recently, with Los Verdiblancos picking up just 13 points from the last 10 outings, and they head into Sunday on the back of consecutive defeats and without a win in five matches across all competitions.

That run has included a draw with Rayo Vallecano in the Copa del Rey semi-final, seeing them advance with a 3-2 aggregate win, but Pellegrini's side have also suffered league losses at the hands of Sevilla and Atletico Madrid before falling short against Eintracht Frankfurt on Thursday.

They hosted the German side in the first leg of a round-of-16 tie, and, despite Nabil Fekir netting an equaliser, Los Verdiblancos eventually fell to a 2-1 loss, giving them work to do next Thursday in the reverse leg.

For now, the Seville outfit will turn their attention back to the domestic front as they look to bridge a two-point gap to fourth-placed Atletico Madrid.

Athletic Bilbao coach Marcelino Garcia Toral reacts on March 2, 2022© Reuters

In their own bid for a top-six finish, Athletic Bilbao have somewhat struggled for consistency recently, although they will be relatively pleased with four victories from their last six league games, having lost the other two.

Following an eye-catching 4-0 thrashing of Real Sociedad, with Dani Vivian, Oihan Sancet, Inaki Williams and Iker Muniain on the scoresheet, Marcelino's men would fall to Barcelona by the same scoreline at the end of February, but they were able to bounce back last time out.

On the back of a Copa del Rey semi-final defeat to Valencia, Los Leones took on Levante in La Liga on Monday, and an injury-time goal for their visitors was the only blemish on a dominant victory as Williams again found the net alongside Mikel Vesga and Oier Zarraga.

With each of the three sides above them losing last time out, Marcelino's side have seen their situation in the top half majorly improved, and, with the chance to climb to seventh and within a point of their hosts, they will have their sights set on a second straight win.

Real Betis La Liga form:
  • W
  • L
  • W
  • W
  • L
  • L

Real Betis form (all competitions):
  • W
  • D
  • L
  • D
  • L
  • L

Athletic Bilbao La Liga form:
  • W
  • W
  • L
  • W
  • L
  • W

Athletic Bilbao form (all competitions):
  • D
  • L
  • W
  • L
  • L
  • W



Team News

Real Betis' Nabil Fekir celebrates scoring their first goal with Juanmi and Aitor Ruibal on March 9, 2022© Reuters

Real Betis remain without several players due to long-term injuries, as Martin Montoya, Alex Moreno and Victor Camarasa continue to be ruled out alongside Hector Bellerin.

Pellegrini has several options to choose from in attack, and Nabil Fekir should be a key man, having provided 10 goals and seven assists across all competitions this season.

Borja Iglesias is likely to lead the line, while Guido Rodriguez and William Carvalho should again anchor the midfield.

Athletic Bilbao have fewer injuries to deal with, although key centre-back Inigo Martinez is unlikely to feature on Sunday.

In his absence, Yeray Alvarez and Dani Vivian should again partner up at the heart of the defensive line, with Oscar de Marcos and Yuri Berchiche completing the back four.

Further forward, the experienced duo of Inaki Williams and captain Iker Muniain continue to be key players, boasting combined tallies of 12 goals and seven assists this season.

Real Betis possible starting lineup:
Silva; Sabaly, Bartra, Gonzalez, Miranda; Carvalho, Rodriguez; Fekir, Canales, Juanmi; Iglesias

Athletic Bilbao possible starting lineup:
Simon; De Marcos, Vivian, Alvarez, Berchiche; Berenguer, Vencedor, Vesga, Muniain; Sancet, Williams


SM words green background

We say: Real Betis 1-1 Athletic Bilbao

We predict a tight and cagey affair on Sunday as two strong sides do battle.

Ultimately, we cannot quite pick a winner as the hosts battle to avoid another defeat against a side in hot pursuit of their place.



Top tip

Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting under 2.5 goals in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.Under 2.5:data



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Written by
Sam Varley

Data Analysis

Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Real Betis win with a probability of 48.57%. A draw had a probability of 26.6% and a win for Athletic Bilbao had a probability of 24.87%.

The most likely scoreline for a Real Betis win was 1-0 with a probability of 13.06%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-0 (9.48%) and 2-1 (9.07%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (12.49%), while for an Athletic Bilbao win it was 0-1 (8.61%). The actual scoreline of 1-0 was predicted with a 13.1% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted a 1-0 win for Real Betis in this match.


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Game History

How you voted: Real Betis vs Athletic Bilbao

Real Betis
60.9%
Draw
23.2%
Athletic Bilbao
15.9%
69
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TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Barcelona17122350193138
2Real Madrid17114237162137
3Atletico MadridAtletico16105130111935
4Athletic Bilbao1795326151132
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6Villarreal157532725226
7Osasuna176742225-325
8Real Sociedad167361611524
9GironaGirona176472325-222
10Sevilla176471823-522
11Real BetisBetis165651820-221
12Celta Vigo176382528-321
13Rayo Vallecano165561819-120
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15Getafe163761113-216
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