Real Betis Balompié travel to face Deportivo La Coruña riding a wave of four consecutive victories. The La Liga match, matchday seven, kicks off at 18:30 local time this Sunday at the Estadio de Riazor. The Verdiblancos sit third in the table with 15 points, just three behind leaders Barcelona.
Betis's confidence is sky-high following a string of impressive results. Their latest win was a narrow 1-0 home victory over Getafe, with Abde Ezzalzouli scoring the only goal before halftime. Prior to that, they won away at Villarreal (1-2) and secured an important European victory in Lille (2-3). The highlight of this run was a 1-0 triumph over Real Madrid at the start of the month. The only blemish in their last five outings was a 5-2 defeat at Levante.
The opponents, Deportivo La Coruña, are seventh in the table and have had mixed results. They lost 0-1 at home to Sevilla in their last match. In previous rounds, they managed a notable win over Villarreal (3-2) and a draw at Getafe. Their most recent starting XI, in a 4-4-2 formation, featured Leo Román in goal and attackers like P. Aubameyang. Betis, for their part, lined up against Getafe with Álvaro Vallés; a defence featuring Natan and Víctor Gómez; and an attack with Isco, Antony, and goalscorer Abde.
The Seville-based side face the match with two confirmed defensive absences: Aitor Ruibal and Diego Llorente. The status of both players can be followed in our injuries section. Their absence will force the manager to readjust the backline for a tough match at a historically difficult ground. A win at Riazor would allow Betis to maintain pressure on the top spots ahead of the upcoming international break.
