Real Betis will be looking to return to winning ways in La Liga on Monday night when they welcome a Granada side that have not lost in their last five league matches.
Betis suffered a 2-0 defeat at Sevilla on their return to action on Thursday night, while Granada continued their impressive run of form with a 2-1 success against high-flying Getafe.
Match preview
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Betis have finished sixth and 10th in their last two campaigns at this level of football, but the Seville outfit have struggled to show their best form this term and are currently 13th in the division.
Eight wins, nine draws and 11 defeats - that is how Betis have performed in La Liga this term, with a total of 33 points from 28 matches leaving them in 13th, eight points clear of the relegation zone.
Rubi's side beat second-placed Real Madrid 2-1 in their final game before the lockdown period on March 8 but suffered a 2-0 defeat to rivals Sevilla on Thursday.
Betis's last two home league victories have come against Real Sociedad and Real Madrid, but they have only beaten Granada once in their last seven meetings in Spain's top flight.
Indeed, the last two clashes between the two teams have been won by Granada, including a 1-0 victory in the reverse match at the Nuevo Estadio de Los Carmenes earlier this season.
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Granada, as mentioned, will enter the match off the back of an impressive 2-1 victory at home to top-four hopefuls Getafe on Friday night. The visitors actually led until the 70th minute of the contest, but Granada turned things around in the latter stages to pick up all three points.
Diego Martinez's side are now unbeaten in their last five league matches, which includes wins over Real Valladolid and Osasuna before the campaign was postponed at the start of March.
El Grana are currently eighth in the table, just two points off seventh-placed Valencia and just four back from sixth-placed Atletico Madrid, who face Athletic Bilbao on Sunday afternoon.
Granada were promoted back to La Liga for the 2019-20 campaign courtesy of a second-placed finish in the Segunda Division last term; they have not actually finished higher than 15th in Spain's top flight since the 1973-74 campaign and could therefore be in for a historic conclusion to the season.
Real Betis La Liga form: LDDLWL
Granada La Liga form: LWWDDW
Granada form (all competitions): WWDWDW
Team News
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Betis will again be without the services of Javi Garcia and Juanmi for Monday's contest, while Marc Bartra is a slight doubt with the problem that he picked up against Sevilla.
Zouhair Feddal is likely to earn a spot in the XI if Bartra does not make it, while Loren Moron and Joaquin could both come into Rubi's thinking following Thursday's defeat.
There are unlikely to be wholesale changes, though, with Sergio Canales, Nabil Fekir and Borja Iglesias among those expected to keep their spots in the starting side.
As for Granada, Yangel Herrera is suspended due to the booking that he picked up against Getafe, but Antonio Puertas is available to return following a suspension of his own.
The visitors still have a number of injury doubts, meanwhile, with Alvaro Vadillo, Alex Martinez, Quini and Neyder Lozano among those expected to miss out on Monday night.
Roberto Soldado should again lead the line for the visitors with support from Darwin Machis.
Real Betis possible starting lineup:
Joel; Emerson, Feddal, Sidnei, Moreno; Canales, Rodriguez, Alena; Fekir, Iglesias, Joaquin
Granada possible starting lineup:
Silva; Neva, Duarte, Sanchez, Diaz; Gonalons, Eteki; Foulquier, Fernandez, Machis; Soldado
We say: Real Betis 1-1 Granada
This is a very difficult game to call for a number of reasons. Granada's run of results deserves a lot of respect, but Betis are capable of picking up strong results on home soil. We are finding it tough to separate them on this occasion and have therefore backed a low-scoring draw.
Matt Law
