Real Betis face Cadiz on Wednesday evening sitting two points adrift of the surprise package in the La Liga standings.
However, both teams have lost four of their last six matches, heaping the pressure on the two managers ahead of their penultimate game of the year.
Match preview
© Reuters
On the back of their return to La Liga, Cadiz boss Alvaro Cervera can have few complaints with seeing the club sitting comfortably in ninth position in the table.
Nevertheless, there will also be a tinge of disappointment given their recent run of defeats, particularly with the most recent setbacks coming against mid-table opposition.
Those results have come in the immediate aftermath of their sensational win at home to Barcelona, and the magnitude of that 2-1 success should be taken into consideration when assessing their form.
That said, Cervera will be desperate to get back on track as soon as possible and the upcoming double-header with Betis and Real Valladolid represents a chance to get a sixth win of the season on the board.
The home side will view the upcoming game in a similar light, particularly when they have shipped just three goals in games against Osasuna, Villarreal and Granada.
While that may not be perceived to be impressive by some observers, Betis still possess the worst defensive record in the division by some margin.
Manuel Pellegrini still has much to prove on his return to Spanish football, but there are at least signs that Los Verdiblancos should comfortably remain out of trouble.
The Chilean will no doubt be demanding more from star man Nabil Fekir, who has failed to contribute a goal or assist during his last nine league appearances.
Real Betis La Liga form: LLLWDL
Real Betis form (all competitions): LLWDWL
Cadiz La Liga form: LLDWLL
Cadiz form (all competitions): LDWLWL
Team News
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Despite two ineffective performances up front, veteran forward Alvaro Negredo will hope to keep his place in the Cadiz attack.
Fali could be handed a recall to the centre of defence after being introduced as a substitute against Getafe.
Betis will be forced into at two alterations with Emerson and Guido Rodriguez both serving suspensions.
Martin Montoya, Borja Iglesias and Joaquin are all pushing for a place in the starting lineup.
Real Betis possible starting lineup:
Robles; Montoya, Mandi, Ruiz, Moreno; Guardado, Barta; Ruibal, Joaquin, Fekir; Iglesias
Cadiz possible starting lineup:
Ledesma; Iza, Fali, Cala, Espino; Sanchez, Jonsson, Fernandez, Perea; Lozano, Negredo
We say: Real Betis 2-1 Cadiz
Betis will take it upon themselves to force the tempo in this game, something which may have mixed results. However, we are backing their superior quality to eventually shine through, potentially during the closing stages of a competitive contest.
Top betting tip
Darren Plant
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 41.1%. A win for Cadiz had a probability of 31.52% and a draw had a probability of 27.4%.
The most likely scoreline for a Real Betis win was 1-0 with a probability of 11.67%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-1 (8.46%) and 2-0 (7.63%). The likeliest Cadiz win was 0-1 (9.9%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (12.94%). The actual scoreline of 1-0 was predicted with an 11.7% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted a 1-0 win for Real Betis in this match.
