Barcelona are aiming to maintain their fine start to the season as they welcome Real Betis to the Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys for a La Liga fixture on Saturday. The Catalans are playing well at the moment and should have the upper hand over Betis, who have been unconvincing so far.
Barcelona's La Liga title defence has begun on a positive note and are unbeaten after four matches this season. Following a 0-0 draw at Getafe on the opening weekend, Xavi’s men have gone on a three match winning run and are now just two points behind leaders Real Madrid.
The Catalans went into the international break with a 2-1 victory at Osasuna in their previous La Liga fixture. Youngster Lamine Yamal caught the eye while Robert Lewandowski netted a late winner in a tricky encounter.
Barcelona appear to have lost some of last season’s defensive solidity having conceded four goals in their last two matches. However, they continue to impress in attack with Lewandowski and Ferran Torres looking sharp so far.
Real Betis also went into the international break with a win as they triumphed 1-0 over Rayo Vallecano in their previous La Liga fixture. William Jose’s effort seven minutes after the restart proved to be the difference in a difficult contest.
It has been a solid enough start to the season for Real Betis, who have claimed two wins and a draw from their opening four matches. Manuel Pellegrini’s men are in the top half of the table, just five points off the pace.
Real Betis’ only defeat this season came in their previous away fixture as they were beaten 4-2 at Athletic Bilbao. They were let down by a leaky defence, conceding four goals after taking a two-goal lead within 10 minutes.
How the bookies view it
The bookies have installed Barcelona as overwhelming favourites with a home win priced at 7/20 by William Hill. A victory for Real Betis is valued at 7/1 by Paddy Power while a draw is set at odds of 4/1 by bet365.
Head to head
Barcelona have a 36-10 advantage with nine draws from 55 previous matches against Real Betis. The Catalans did the double in this tie last season, picking up a 2-1 victory in Betis before running out 4-0 winners at Camp Nou back in April.
Players to watch
Robert Lewandowski has now scored in the last two matches for Barcelona and could be backed to maintain that run at 8/11 with bet365. With Two goals in his last three matches, Ferran Torres could be worth keeping an eye on at 23/10 with William Hill.
Willian Jose has been the standout player for Real Betis this season, scoring three goals in four matches so far. The striker will be the one to watch and is priced at 10/3 by bet365 to find the net on Saturday.
Anything else catch the eye?
Barcelona and Real Betis have quality in attack and both teams could be backed to score at 17/20 by William Hill. Two of the last three meetings have produced over 3.5 goals which is priced at 29/20 by BetVictor.
Having picked up a 4-0 win in the previous meeting with Real Betis, Barcelona can be backed in the -1 handicap market at 21/20 with Betfred.
This La Liga match between Barcelona and Real Betis will be played on Sep 16, 2023 and kick off at 20:00. Check below for our tipsters best Barcelona vs Real Betis prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
