La Liga: Villarreal and Betis in a Top Four Tussle

Villarreal vs Real Betis

All roads lead to the Estadio de la Ceramica in Castillon where La Liga: Villarreal vs Real Betis is the Saturday evening entertainment on offer. 

It’s third versus fourth in the early La Liga table and both teams have European football on their plates as well. This is a top-class encounter between two clubs in great shape and the Villarreal vs Real Betis betting odds say we’re in for a treat. 

Before the international break a 3-1 defeat to Real Madrid ended a run of three consecutive Primera Liga victories for the Yellow Submarine, while Betis made it back-to-back wins with a 2-1 result away to Espanyol, and both will fancy their chances of three points when they meet this weekend. 

 

Talking Points 

Mouriño out for Villarreal

Head coach Marcelino has a slot to fill on Saturday as he will be without Uruguayan star Santiago Mouriño after the right-sided defender picked up a second yellow card in the loss to Real Madrid last week, when he dragged back Vinicius Junior who was in the clear and, following his early bath, Los Blancos went on to win 3-1. On a brighter note Georgian striker Georges Mikautadze continued his promising form with a goal for the Yellow Submarine and, in the absence of Gerard Moreno who is suffering from a hamstring injury, Mikautadze will hope to start against Real Betis. 

24-year-old right back Adria Altimara is the man likely to step in for Mouriño, but otherwise Marcelino has a settled line-up. Defensive midfielder Thomas Partey has shrugged off his off-field problems and is a powerful presence in Villarreal’s engine room, while Senegal ace Papa Gueye is a powerful runner. 

After three straight league wins a Champions League clash with Juventus proved to be a tough examination for the Yellow Submarine and they fought hard for a point, defender Renato Veiga scoring a late equaliser after Mikautadze had put Villarreal in front. Meeting Los Blancos straight after that battle with the Old Lady was a tough ask and, with a couple of weeks to regroup, I expect Marcelino’s team to be ready for the Betis challenge.  

 

Cucho is hot for Betis

One player the hosts’ defenders will need to keep a close eye on is 26-year-old Colombian forward Cucho Hernandez, who has already bagged four goals this season and has proved to be a real handful, with his close control, direct running and lethal finishing. Hernandez transferred to Betis from Columbus Crew last winter and he has proved to be a shrewd signing by Manuel Pellegrini. He scored the second goal in Los Verdiblancos’ 2-0 win over Osasuna at the end of last month and Hernandez followed that up with a goal against another European hopeful just before the break. Espanyol too have made a strong start to the La Liga season but Pellegrini’s Betis plundered all three points after coming from a goal behind in Catalonia. Cucho bagged the equaliser early in the second period before Abde Ezzalzouli latched onto a through ball from Pablo Fornals and slid his shot home, to send the visiting fans wild. That win made it three from three in the league and four wins from five in all competitions. Betis drew 2-2 with Nottingham Forest in the Europa League, this time Cedric Bakambu and Antony on the score sheet. 

Los Verdiblancos have a talented creative unit and they still have club captain Isco to add into the mix when he recovers from injury.     

 

History 

Both teams come into this game in good form; Villarreal have three wins, one draw and two defeats in all competitions while Betis have recorded four wins and two draws from their last six.  

The head-to-head Villarreal vs Real Betis results have been well contested through the years, though the Yellow Sub is ahead by 16 wins to 11 over the past 35 games, while there have been eight draws. But, more recently, Los Verdiblancos have enjoyed some good trips to the Estadio de la Ceramica, winning three times on their last five visits to Castellon.  

 

Betting Tip

Villarreal are the favourites to win this mouth-watering clash at SBOTOP odds of 1.85 with Real Betis at 3.77 and the draw is priced at 3.65. You can make a case for all three outcomes and Los Verdiblancos have had some success in this fixture in recent seasons. But Villarreal were in fine form before their defeat to Los Blancos and I think the two weeks off will do the hosts good. I expect the Yellow Submarine to come out firing.     

   

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