Real Betis will be looking to bounce back from their opening day defeat as they host Sparta Prague in a Europa League Group C fixture. The Spanish side will be relying on their solid home record and should have the edge over their visitors.
Real Betis suffered a 1-0 defeat to Scottish side Rangers in their opening fixture of the Europa League. They will be disappointed to have come away empty-handed having seen more of the possession and created several goalscoring opportunities.
The result may have been disappointing but it seems to have sparked up a resurgence for Real Betis. Manuel Pellegrini’s men are unbeaten in their last three matches and head into Thursday’s clash off the back of a 3-0 victory over Valencia in a La Liga fixture last weekend.
The win over Valencia extends Real Betis’ solid home record as they are now unbeaten in their last four matches. The record at the Estadio Benito Villamarin has been driven by a solid defence that has only conceded once in that run.
Sparta Prague were victorious in their opening fixture as they triumphed 3-2 over Aris Limassol. They fought back from a goal down with efforts from Ladislav Krejci and Martin Vitik giving them the win despite a late blitz from the visitors.
The Czech side have been in good form lately and are unbeaten in their last eight matches, claiming seven wins in that run. Brian Priske’s men claimed a 2-1 victory over Viktoria Plzen in a Czech Liga fixture last weekend.
While things are looking good at the moment, Sparta Prague often struggle on their travels in Europe. Their last away fixture in the Europa League was a 3-1 defeat to Dinamo Zagreb during the qualifiers.
How the bookies view it
Real Betis have the upper hand among the bookies with a home win priced at 4/5 by 10bet. A victory for Sparta Prague is valued at 10/3 by Paddy Power while William Hill is offering odds of 3/1 for a draw.
Head to head
This will be the first ever meeting between Real Betis and Sparta Prague.
Players to watch
Assane Diao has caught the eye in recent weeks and could be the one to watch for Real Betis. The young forward has found the net in his last two matches and is priced at 5/2 by William Hill to maintain his scoring run.
Real Betis will be keen to maintain their recent defensive solidity having kept three clean sheets in their last four home matches. Marc Bartra and German Pezzella should continue in defence and can lead the Spanish side to a clean sheet at 15/8 with Coral.
Anything else catch the eye?
Given Real Betis’ defensive solidity at home, BTTS NO could be considered at 13/10 by BetVictor. The Spanish side has also seen under 2.5 goals in three of their last four matches across all competitions and a similar outcome is priced at 13/10 by Unibet.
Real Betis claimed a win to nil in their last home fixture and could be set for a repeat at 12/5 with BoyleSports.
This UEFA Europa League match between Real Betis and Sparta Prague will be played on Oct 5, 2023 and kick off at 17:45. Check below for our tipsters best Real Betis vs Sparta Prague prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
