Betis vs Rayo Vallecano prediction: SPAIN: LaLiga betting tips on match 2023-09-01 19:00.
Manuel Pellegrini may have just about calmed down from last weekend’s La Liga (LL) defeat to Athletic Club by the time Real Betis return to action. The head coach saw his side let a two-goal lead slip to lose 4-2 and blasted the officials for awarding the opposition a couple of spot-kicks that helped them get back in the game, insisting, “the first penalty was not [a foul] and it was also offside.”
That result came after a reasonably positive start to the campaign for Betis, who had picked up four points from their opening two matches, including a 2-1 win at Villarreal (D1). Their form at Estadio Benito VillamarĂn remains a concern though, where they have failed to score in three of their last five league outings after a 0-0 draw with AtlĂ©tico Madrid a couple of weeks ago (W1, D3, L1).
Supporters might be confident of turning that record around against opponents for this match Rayo Vallecano given Atlético then went and put seven past the Red Sashes on Monday. That was not only the first defeat of the campaign for Francisco’s side (W2), but also the 7-0 hammering was their heaviest loss in eight years.
Francisco insisted post-match that “there’s no need to dramatise” the result, but he will be desperate to get things back on track as quickly as possible. However, Vallecano’s H2H record against Betis suggests returning to winning ways might be difficult in this fixture, as they have won just one of the last 11 meetings (D4, L6).
Key battle: Rui Silva, who has taken over as Betis’ first-choice goalkeeper this season, has suffered only one loss in four H2Hs with Vallecano, despite never keeping a clean sheet (W2, D1). Hoping to extend that record may be Rayo forward Randy Nteka, who has suffered just one defeat in the 15 club games in which he has scored over the last four years (W9, D5).
Hot stat: Rayo are seeking to win three away La Liga games in a row for the first time since early 2012; they’ve also never picked up victories in their opening three LL fixtures on the road.