Barcelona welcome Real Betis to Montjuic in the round of 16 of the Copa del Rey on Wednesday night.
The Catalan giants are still high above their own Supercopa de Espana triumph over Real Madrid on Sunday night, defeating their arch-rivals 5-2 to claim the first trophy of Hansi Flick’s tenure in style. Betis will aim to bring their flight-strapped hosts back down to earth.
Manuel Pellegrini’s side sit right in the middle La Liga table halfway through the season, but held Barcelona to a 2-2 draw when the teams met in Sevilla in early December.
Barcelona vs Real Betis H2H record (last five matches)
Current form (all competitions)
|
Barcelona |
Real Betis |
|---|---|
|
Real Madrid 2-5 Barcelona – 01.12.25 |
Real Valladolid 1-0 Real Betis – 01.11.25 |
|
Athletic Club 0-2 Barcelona – 01.08.25 |
Huesca 0-1 Real Betis – 11.4.25 |
|
Barbastro 0-4 Barcelona – 01.04.25 |
Real Betis 1-1 Rayo Vallecano – 22.12.24 |
|
Barcelona 1-2 Atletico Madrid – 21.12.24 |
Real Betis 1-0 HJK – 19.12.24 |
|
Barcelona 0-1 Leganes – 15.12.24 |
Villarreal 1-2 Real Betis – 15.12.24 |
|
Earth |
TV channel/live stream |
|---|---|
|
Great Britain |
ON |
|
United States |
ESPN+, the ESPN app |
|
Canada |
ON |
Barcelona lost central defender Inigo Martinez to a hamstring injury in the first half hour of Sunday’s game 5-2 defeat of Real Madrid. The club have confirmed that the veteran defender will be out for around four weeks, giving him a place in the back line alongside Pau Cubarsi’s unwavering presence.
Ronald Araujo is the most likely replacement, especially as Andreas Christensen linked to Manchester United stays aside.
Long-term absentees Marc-Andre ter Stegen and Ansu Fati will also miss out, while – crucially – Dani Olmo will be able to feature once he earns temporary registration.
Predicted line-up of Barcelona against Real Betis (4-2-3-1): Foam; Kounde, Cubarsi, Araujo, Balde; Pedri, Casado; Yamal, Olmo, Raphinha; Lewandowski.
Pellegrini has to juggle several injuries. The wily Chilean coach will be without persistent striker Ezequiel Avila until the end of January. Midfield trio Marc Roca (knee), Pablo Fornals (muscle) and William Carvalho (ACL) are also out.
Former Barcelona right-back Hector Bellerin has missed the last two-and-a-half months with a concussion and is set to sit out this potential reunion.
Real Betis predicted the lineup against Barcelona (4-2-3-1): Vieites; Sabaly, Llorente, Natan, Rodriguez; Altimira, Cardoso; Lo Celso, Isco, Abde; Bakambu
Once, when Vic Buckingham was manager Barcelona in the late 1960s, his pre-match team talk consisted of writing down the opponent’s name on a board in the dressing room – ‘BETIS’ – then asking, “who are Betis? F*** Betis,” before kicking the board to the ground.
This modern iteration of Real Betis is not without its threat. Return Isco still has magic in his boots and is feeling his way back into the first team after missing the first four months of the season with a broken leg, while Giovani Lo Celso has bagged an impressive seven goals from an attacking midfield role.
However, Flick will expect the same positive result as Buckingham – even if he adopts a less abrasive approach.
Prediction: Barcelona 3-1 Real Betis
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