Betis – Real Madrid
Three draws in a row. Three consecutive games without a win. Things are not looking good for Real Madrid in La Liga right now. The Los Blancos are not on the top of the league anymore, although they are on equal points with the new leader Atletico Madrid.
This weekend Real Madrid will have to travel to Seville to meet Real Betis. The Los Blancos’ manager Zinedine Zidane is fully aware that he can’t allow a fourth consecutive game without a win, so everybody expects to see Real Madrid finally snatching its fifth win in La Liga since the start of the new season. But what could Real Betis do to stop the reigning European champions?
The Seville team is not performing very convincing since the start of the new season. Betis is currently just two tops above the relegation zone of La Liga, having won 8 points in the first seven rounds. They lost two of their last three games – against Sevilla and Real Sociedad, but won against Malaga at home.
Marcelo and James Rodriguez are back in training for Real Madrid, after healing successfully from their last injuries. The problems for Zinedine Zidane come from the condition of Casemiro, Luka Modric and Sergio Ramos, who are not at his disposal at the moment.
Real Betis’ manager Gus Poyet could be without the goalkeeper Antonio Adan, but Jonas Martin, Antonio Sanabria, Rafa Navarro and Alissa Mandi are all back in training.
Real Madrid are the clear favourite to win this one, but remember that it was the same against Villarreal, Las Palmas and Eibar as well. The Los Blancos are clearly far away from their best form at the moment, but they know that the win against Betis is “a must” after three consecutive games without three points.