La Liga: High-Stakes Seville Derby Set for More Spice

Sevilla vs Real Betis

Bitter local rivals Sevilla and Real Betis are set to square off for their third El Gran Derbi this season. Sevilla beat Betis 2-0 in their first La Liga meeting at the Benito Villamarin after Betis went down to 10 men.

But Betis got their revenge – albeit under controversial circumstances – as they knocked their rivals out of the Copa del Rey in a contentious cup tie that saw Sevilla’s Joan Jordan hit in the head by a pole and caused a postponement in play.

That incident is sure to add even more spice to an already fiery derby. Add in the fact that the two clubs are second and third in the La Liga table deep into the season, and this has all the makings of another raucous derby day at the Sanchez Pizjuan.

Talking Points

Sevilla continue to squander their chances in title chase

Second-placed Sevilla are the only side that can realistically challenge Real Madrid for the title this season. But the Rojiblancos’ La Liga 2022 odds of winning the title are not looking good as they continue to squander their chances to close in on the leaders.

They dropped two more points in an away draw away to Espanyol last weekend, their fourth draw in the last five games, as they remain six points behind Real.

To make matters worse, star centre-back Jules Kounde was shown a controversial red card that will see him suspended for the derby. Key attacker Lucas Ocampos will also be banned after picking up his fifth yellow card of the campaign.

Sevilla will face Dinamo Zagreb in the second leg of their Europa League play-off in midweek. They are in firm control of the tie after their 3-1 home win in the first leg, so coach Julen Lopetegui may decide to rotate his side ahead of the derby.

With forwards Anthony Martial, Suso, and Erik Lamela all out injured, Youssef En-Nesyri should get a chance to start and regain his form. The 24-year-old, who was Sevilla’s top scorer with 18 league goals last season, has had an injury-hit campaign and hasn’t scored in La Liga since September.

Rafa Mir, who is the team’s leading scorer this season with eight goals, including two in his last two La Liga appearances, is the favourite to start at centre-forward for Sevilla in the derby.

Sevilla have a stellar home record this season. They are unbeaten in 12 games at the Sanchez Pizjuan, with nine wins and three draws.

Betis can’t stop scoring

Real Betis just keep on rolling. Los Verdiblancos beat Mallorca 2-1 last weekend, their fourth win in a row in all competitions and their eighth in the last nine.

Manuel Pellegrini’s free-scoring side have banged in an impressive 25 goals during their last nine games, a run which began with their controversial Copa del Rey win over Sevilla.

Like Sevilla, Betis will also be in Europa League action in midweek. They will be at home against Zenit St Petersburg after winning the first leg, 3-2. Pellegrini doesn’t have the deepest squad at his disposal, so he is unlikely to rotate too much in the second leg.

Although, Pellegrini does have two capable centre-forwards to call upon in Borja Iglesias and Willian Jose. Iglesias has cooled off a bit recently with just one goal in his last six appearances, but Willian Jose has suddenly caught fire with four goals in his last six.

Whoever starts up front should have ample support from their talented attacking midfield trio of Juanmi (the team’s top scorer with 12 league goals), Nabil Fekir (6 goals, 6 assists), and Sergio Canales (3 goals, 5 assists), who are all capable of producing La Liga 2022 highlights.

Betis have been absolutely fantastic away from home of late. They have won each of their last five away matches in all competitions and are unbeaten in their last seven. Moreover, they have scored three or more goals in six of those seven away games and four or more goals three times during that stretch.

History

This will be the 102nd El Gran Derbi in the Primera Division. Sevilla have a substantial 48-30 advantage in wins, while there have been 23 draws.

The most recent encounters between the two club have favoured Sevilla as they’ve gone six matches unbeaten against Betis, with five wins. Betis’ last win at the Sanchez Pizjuan came in 2018 in a 5-3 barn burner.

Betting Tip 

SBOTOP odds have Sevilla installed as 2.17 favourites over rivals Betis, who are priced at 3.30 to win at the Sanchez Pizjuan. Meanwhile, a draw is similarly priced at 3.30.

Betis are clearly the form team of the two. Their confidence is sky high, and their prolific attack is looking unstoppable at the moment.

Moreover, the absence of Kounde, Ocampos, and Martial for this match will be a huge blow for Sevilla on both ends of the pitch, and they could very well struggle to keep up with Betis’ high-powered attack as a result.

 

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