Real Betis vs Bayer Leverkusen predictions and match preview for Thursday’s UEFA Europa League fixture. Read on for the head-to-head, team news and predicted lineups as the top two teams in this group meet.
| Date | Thursday 21st October 2021 |
| Kick-Off | 18:45 (local time) |
| Stadium | Benito Villamarin |
| Competition | UEFA Europa League Group Stage |
Real Betis vs Bayer Leverkusen Preview
Real Betis are back in action in the UEFA Europa League on Thursday, hoping to make it three wins from three when they face Bayer Leverkusen at the Benito Villamarin. The two games against the Bundesliga side will present the toughest test in the group but victory here would leave them with one foot in the knockout stage.
In truth, Betis should easily progress from this point. They survived a scare on matchday 1 by coming from 2-0 down to beat Celtic 4-3 in a thriller in Seville. Betis then struck twice in the latter stages to seal a 3-1 win in Hungary against Ferencvaros to set them up perfectly for this double header against Leverkusen.
Overall, Manuel Pellegrini will certainly be happy with how his team have started the season. Their impressive form continued on Monday night when Borja Iglesias struck an 89th minute winner to clinch victory at Alaves. They have been in the habit of scoring late goals this season and they do look to have better attacking options overall with Willian Jose providing genuine competition for Iglesias while youngster Rodri has also stepped up a gear.
As for Bayer Leverkusen, they’ve also won their opening two matches meaning these games feel like they will determine who wins this group. There is a much clearer advantage for group winners this season as it’ll mean direct passage to the last 16 whereas the 2nd placed team will need to play an extra knockout round to make it that far, not ideal on an already busy calendar.
Leverkusen were made to work quite hard on matchday 1 as they came from behind to beat Ferencvaros 2-1. However they underlined how dangerous they can be by hammering Celtic 4-0 in Glasgow in their second group fixture. They are riding high in 3rd place in the Bundesliga too but were dealt something of a reality check in the form of a 5-1 home defeat against Bayern Munich at the weekend.
Head to Head
- This will be the first ever meeting.
Team News
Youssouf Sabaly is the only expected injury absentee for the hosts. There is likely to be some rotation from Monday night’s game.
Exequiel Palacios, Timothy Fosu-Mensah and Charles Aranguiz are missing for Bayer Leverkusen due to injury and illness.
Predicted Betis Starting Lineup:
Bravo – Moreno, Gonzalez, Bartra, Bellerin – Rodriguez, Carvalho – Canales, Fekir, Juanmi – Iglesias (4-2-3-1)
Predicted Leverkusen Starting Lineup:
Hradecky – Bakker, Kossounou, Tah, Frampong – Amiri, Demirbay – Diaby, Wirtz, Paulinho – Schick (4-2-3-1)
Real Betis vs Bayer Leverkusen Predictions
Score Prediction: Real Betis 2-2 Bayer Leverkusen
Both sides seek to play positive football and we should be in for one of the most entertaining and highest quality games in the Europa League group stage. Both sides will be hungry to win the group given the advantage it offers and it should be a close game with a score draw perhaps on the cards.
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