Real Betis host Real Sociedad at the Estadio de La Cartuja in round two of the new LaLiga season, with both sides coming off very different summers. Betis arrive with continuity and confidence, Sociedad with a squad still catching its breath after a busy close season. Verdict: Real Betis to win
Odds: 2.01
Bookmaker: 1xBet
Real Betis
Manuel Pellegrini has kept his squad largely intact after a Champions League-qualifying campaign, and it showed in preseason: Betis beat Lyon 4-0 and Arsenal 3-1, drew with Bournemouth, and conceded only four goals across the entire summer program. That kind of defensive control, paired with a squad that already knows Pellegrini’s system, makes Betis the more settled side heading into round two.
The club also finished last season strongly at home, winning their final two games at the Villamarin, and have reinforced further with the arrivals of Fran Garcia and Facundo Bernal. Real Betis Team News
Isco is still building match fitness after the summer break. Antony’s involvement is unclear, with sources giving conflicting reports on his availability .
There is a genuine selection call at center-back between Bartra and Llorente, while summer signings Fran Garcia and Facundo Bernal look ready to be involved from the start. Real Sociedad
Sociedad’s summer told a very different story. They won the Copa del Rey last season but could only finish 12th in LaLiga, and their preseason form has been shaky, defeats to Chelsea, Cologne, and Toulouse in three straight warm-up games. The bigger issue is fitness: Kubo, Sucic, Guedes, and Oyarzabal are all returning from World Cup duty on staggered schedules and are short of full sharpness.
Oyarzabal in particular is a player Sociedad need firing, given he scored 15 league goals last season, but a player just back from an international tournament rarely hits the ground running. Real Sociedad Team News
Igor Zubeldia and Ander Barrenetxea are both suspended for this one, a blow to a Sociedad defense that is already short of options after the club failed to land its preferred center-back target in the transfer market.
With four key attacking and midfield players still working back to full fitness, this is a difficult opening assignment for a Sociedad side that managed only three wins from nineteen away matches in LaLiga last season. Real Betis vs Real Sociedad Key Factors to Consider
The two sides’ most recent meeting ended 2-2, and the corresponding home fixture last season finished 3-1 to Betis. Betis hold the recent head-to-head edge overall, with four wins from their last ten meetings against Sociedad to two defeats.
Sociedad won just three of nineteen away matches in LaLiga last season. Betis are playing their home fixtures at the Estadio de La Cartuja while the Benito Villamarin undergoes redevelopment, so neither side has direct recent experience of this exact matchup at this venue. Sociedad have four key players, Kubo, Sucic, Guedes, and Oyarzabal, all returning from World Cup duty on staggered schedules and short of full match fitness. Zubeldia and Barrenetxea’s suspensions add further selection problems to an already stretched Sociedad defense.
Conclusion
Betis go into this with a settled squad, a strong preseason behind them, and a Sociedad side still working through fitness and selection problems of their own making. The head-to-head record and Sociedad’s poor recent away form in LaLiga both point the same way. Real Betis to win is the pick. Verdict: Real Betis to win
Odds: 2.01
Bookmaker: 1xBet
