Following last week’s 2-1 victory for Real Betis, Roma will be out for revenge when they visit Seville for the reverse fixture on Thursday.
Having lost two of their opening three games, Jose Mourinho’s men sit third in Europa League Group C – one point behind second-place Ludogorets.
🔜⚽💪#RealBetisRoma pic.twitter.com/L6fEtVtqkM— Real Betis Balompié 🌴💚 (@RealBetis) October 9, 2022
🔜⚽💪#RealBetisRoma pic.twitter.com/L6fEtVtqkM
On the flip side, Betis find themselves atop the group – six points clear of Roma – after kicking off their Europa League campaign with three consecutive wins.
After beating HJK (2-0) on Matchday 1, the Spanish side beat Ludogorets (3-2) on Matchday 2 before beating Roma (2-1) last week.
Betis came from behind to claim all three points in the reverse fixture, finishing the game with 61% possession and 12 shots.
In addition to winning each of the last four Europa League games, Betis have avoided defeat in six of their previous seven.
Betis are also enjoying a strong La Liga campaign. Having won five of their eight domestic outings, they find themselves fifth in the table – six points behind Barcelona and Real Madrid.
As for Roma, they lost to Ludogorets (2-1) on Matchday 1 before beating HJK (3-0) on Matchday 2. However, they were beating by Betis last week.
All three of Roma’s Europa League games this season have dished up over 2.5 goals, meaning Thursday’s clash should be a high-scoring affair.
Roma head into Matchday 4 on the back of a 2-1 victory over Lecce. As a result, they sit fifth in Serie A – four points behind first-place Napoli – after winning six of their nine matches.
It is worth noting that Mourinho’s men have not drawn any of their past nine games in all competitions, recording five wins and four defeats.
Head-to-head: Betis and Roma have faced each other twice since 2021, playing out one Europa League clash and one friendly.
Betis thrashed Roma 5-2 in a friendly last year before winning last week’s clash 2-1. Can the Italians avoid a third successive defeat?
Team news: Betis will be without winger Juanmi on Thursday as he continues to recover from ankle ligament damage.
Roma look set to be without the key duo of Georginio Wijnaldum and Paulo Dybala due to injury. On top of that, Nicolo Zaniolo is suspended following last week’s red card.
Given what happened in the reverse fixture, Betis are expected to come out on top once again on Thursday.
Forebet predicts that Real Betis will claim all three points on home soil, with the two sides expected to combine for over 3.5 goals.