FC Barcelona and Betis face each other this Saturday, at 9:00 PM, in the match corresponding to matchday 30 of the EA Sports League. Lluís Companys will host this duel, where it is expected to sell out again after the qualification for the Cup a few days ago. The match can be watched on DAZN and followed minute by minute through our social media @carpetasblaugranas
Jesús Gil Manzano will be the main referee of the match, accompanied in the VAR by Pizarro Gómez. The Extremaduran has already officiated 3 times for the blaugranas, where Flick's team has always come out victorious. He has officiated a total of 34 matches for the Béticos, with the same number of wins as losses (14) and six draws.
How Barça Arrives
The blaugranas, shining Copa finalists, maintain their romance with this 2025 in which they have not yet lost. That narrow victory against Atlético de Madrid allows them to continue aspiring to all titles, having already won the Spanish Super Cup in January. Additionally, the CSD has once again sided with Barça regarding the registrations of Dani Olmo and Pau Víctor, so both can remain registered and play.
In the pre-match press conference, Hans Flick spoke about eliminating those spaces that allow the opponent to create dangerous counterattacks. He continues to maintain that the League is not a two-horse race and that they can't think about Dortmund because Betis comes first, which will be challenging. Regarding dreams, he left a headline: "I want to play 15 more matches", which means reaching the Champions League final.
Regarding the line-up, the German did not want to give clues, however, he mentioned several times that "fresh legs are needed." The good news is that all the players who finished with knocks (Lamine, Íñigo, or Gavi) have trained normally, so they could play without issue. Lewandowski will return to the starting line-up after rotating in the Cup, Gerard Martín could enter in defense, and in the midfield, the rotation of Pedri or Frenkie de Jong is not ruled out.
How Betis Arrives
Manuel Pellegrini's team is experiencing a great sporting moment, motivated by that victory in the great classic, something that hadn't happened in years. To this, we must add that they advanced in the Conference (where Jagiellonia awaits) and that in the League they are sixth, just 6 points away from Champions League qualification. In the League, they haven't lost since February 8, a match they were winning 0-2 at halftime and Celta came back.
The Chilean coach commented that he doesn't plan to completely change his way of playing just because they have to visit the leader. He was very happy about beating Sevilla and involved the fans, who supported them from the training before the match. Regarding the rumors placing him as the next Brazil coach, he wanted to put the matter to rest, as he has a contract with Betis.
Regarding the starting XI, he confirmed that Abde and Marc Roca might have options for the Conference match, the rest (except Isco) are ready for the weekend. The player who will replace the Spanish attacking midfielder will be Lo Celso, who already had minutes against Sevilla, while Cucho will remain at the front. The rest of the line-up will be very similar to the previous match, with a possible change at left-back, with Perraud coming in for Rodríguez.
Match Keys
Cucho Hernández, on a Roll: the Colombian forward arrived in Seville in this winter market and is already starting to show his talent. He has scored two goals in the last two matches, one of them in the classic they won last weekend. Accompanied by an Antony who is enjoying a second chance, they should be the pillars in Betis's attack, especially with the absence of the Málaga player.
Previous Duels: culés and verdiblancos have faced each other several times, as they are two classics of the League, although there is a clear winner in the recent duels. Barça hasn't lost to Betis since the 21/22 season, when Pellegrini's team won 0-1 against Xavi Hernández's team at the time. The last time they faced each other was in the Copa del Rey, where the blaugranas thrashed the Béticos with a resounding 5-1.
Set Pieces: the blaugranas manage several offensive registers, counterattacks, soccer, control, and of course, set pieces. They have scored several goals through crosses, as they have great kickers like Raphinha or Pedri in their ranks. Betis is not a team that defends these types of actions in the best way, so the locals could take advantage of corners or lateral free kicks.
The Battle for the 'Pichichi': last weekend, Barça defeated Girona 3-0 and Lewandowski managed to score a goal. The Pole is competing against the Frenchman to become the Pichichi of the EA Sports League, hence at the end of the match he reproached Balde for a couple of plays. Although the forward's tone was friendly, it was confirmed that he is very focused on this competition.
