Sevilla v Real Betis Betting Tips: Who’ll come out on top in El Gran Derbi?
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Odds and preview for Thursday night’s La Liga fixture
Sevilla are the odds-on favourites at 17/20 to win, with their rivals Real Betis at 16/5 to claim all three points. The draw can be backed at 13/5.
The teams last met back in October, with Sevilla running out as 2-1 winners and you can back the same scoreline tonight at 15/2
Argentine striker Lucas Ocampos has 10 goals from 22 appearances for Sevilla this season and is 7/2 to open the scoring, or 7/5 to score anytime, with January signing Youssef En-Nesyri priced at 7/2 to be first scorer, or 13/10 to net anytime.
For Betis, Loren Moren leads the goalscorer markets, at 5/1 to score first or 15/8 anytime, with Borja Iglesias 6/1 to score first, or 23/10 to score anytime.
What better way to restart La Liga than with the resumption of one of its fiercest rivalries?
Known as El Gran Derbi, both Sevilla and Real Betis will be itching to win tonight’s derby, although its Sevilla who have had the better of recent meetings. They’ve beaten Betis on the last two occasions they’ve met.
Julen Lopetegui’s Seville side currently sit in third in La Liga, although just two points separate them from sixth-placed Atletico, with things particularly tight in the battle for a Champions League spot.
Real Betis are currently 12th and may find themselves without much to play for. Europa League qualification looks unlikely, while they should be able to steer clear of getting into a relegation battle.
While league form may seem irrelevant after such a long gap between games, Sevilla have the edge there too, winning two, drawing two and losing one of their last five La Liga games. They also hold a scoring streak of 19 games having found the net in every La Liga game since a 4-0 defeat to Barcelona in October.
Betis have won just one of their last five, losing two and drawing two in the process. However, their final game before the league paused was a 2-1 win over Real Madrid and manager Rubi will be hoping for that kind of underdog performance again tonight.
Sevilla have no real injury worries, with midfielder Nemanja Gudelj likely to be the only absence, owing to a 1-game suspension for picking up five yellow cards.
Real Betis on the other hand are likely to be without wingers Juanmi and Diego Lainez, as well as Portuguese midfielder William Carvalho.
Sevilla’s preferred formation sees them play with three up front, with former Newcastle striker Luuk de Jong playing a central target man role. That allows top-scorer Ocampos alongside either Suso or Nolito to attack from wider positions.
Betis are likely to play with one up front, with either Loren Moron or Borja Iglesias leading the line. Much of their attacking impetus comes from the legendary Joaquin on the right, still going strong at 38, as well as Nabil Fekir.
The latter was linked with a big-money move to Liverpool two seasons ago, before opting to swap Lyon for Real Betis, and he has impressed so far in La Liga – scoring seven and assisting three in 22 appearances. He’s also the kind of player you’d expect to shine, knowing that the game will have all eyes on it.
While it’s often said that form goes out the window in derby games, with no form to speak of this could be an intriguing tie. Sevilla on paper look the better side and have more to play for, but Real Betis are unlikely to just roll over for their rivals and will look to their last outing against Real Madrid for inspiration.
All odds and markets are correct as of date of publication.
