Real Sociedad vs Real Betis Prediction, Betting Tips & Preview

Preview

Joel Amorim Jan 26, 2016 @ 01:20 am

Next Saturday, 30th of January 2016, a fragilized Real Sociedad will measure forces with a motivated Real Betis at Anoeta in San Sebastian for Round 22 of the Spanish Liga BBVA.

Real Sociedad’s visit to El Molinon last Friday night ended up being an utter nightmare. The San Sebastian team put up an extremely mediocre overall performance and were easily overcome by a mighty Sporting de Gijón, who managed to make the best out of Real Sociedad’s defensive sloppiness to score them five goals. Real’s Argentinean goalkeeper, Gerónimo Rulli, who is usually the glue that keeps the team’s defense together, also had a night to forget and he was the main responsible for Sporting’s first goal before the first minute of the match.

The lonely Carlos Vela’s goal that put Real Sociedad back in the game in first-half was the best the Basque team managed to produce during the entire match.

Eusebio Sacristán’s men are now dangerously close from the relegation zone since they are only three points clear from UD Las Palmas, who are the first team below the red line.

For next weekend’s important match against Real Betis, Eusebio Sacristán will not be able to rely on the services of Imanol Agirretxe and Sergio Canales, who are undergoing treatment for their respective injuries. Esteban Granero, Aritz Elustondo, Carlos Martinez and Yuri Berchiche are also still recovering from minor injuries and they are in doubt out there.

As for Real Betis, after a long season in the abyss without scoring a single goal at La Liga, the Andalusia team managed, against all the odds, to claw a valuable 1-1 draw against Real Madrid last time out. Juan Merino, the currently caretaker, who took Pepe Mel’s place last week, had the best of starts at the helm of Los Béticos with his team putting up a very solid performance against Zidane’s new Real Madrid at Benito Villamarin last Sunday night. An early goal by Álvaro Cejudo helped Real Bétis cause first major upset to the Frenchman, ever since he took control of the Madrid powerhouse.

For next weekend’s visit to San Sebastian, Juan Merino will not be able to rely on the services of Juan Vargas, who is currently suspended. The Italian defender, Cristiano Piccini, who is injured at the moment, will also miss out there.

Real Sociedad

Stats: W-1 L-2 D-2

Recent Form - LDWDL

Real Betis

Stats: W-0 L-3 D-2

Recent Form - DDLLL

Possible Line-ups

Real Sociedad (4-3-3) – Rulli - Zaldua - Reyes - I. Martinez - Litri - Illarramendi - Bergara - Pardo - Bruma - Vela - Jonathas

Real Betis (4-2-3-1) – Adan - Molinero - Cabrera - Pezzella - Varela - N’Diaye - Petros - Cejudo - Ruiz - Joaquin - Ruben Castro

Injury List / Suspended Players

Real Sociedad - Imanol Agirretxe (inj) - Canales (inj) - Esteban Granero (in doubt) Aritz Elustondo (in doubt) Carlos Martinez (in doubt) Yuri Berchiche (in doubt)

Real Betis - Juan Vargas (sus) - Cristiano Piccini (inj)

Head-to-head matches:

League Positions