Will Barca keep the clean sheet at home again?

FC Barcelona is in the 2023 Champions League final. This headline is not made up or wishful thinking, but refers to the women’s team of the world club from Catalonia, which last Thursday against Chelsea could solve the ticket for the final of the most important trophy in women’s soccer. The men’s team, on the other hand, has not been doing so well lately.

The Xavi team has only won one of its last four league games. During the week, the Blaugrana even lost 1:2 at Rayo Vallecano and once again fell far short of their own expectations.

Despite the virtually already determined championship in La Liga, Robert Lewandowski and Co. want to return to the track of success on Saturday evening and give their own fans a home treble. Looking at the betting odds, betting on a win for the hosts is the only realistic option on the three-way market between Barcelona and Betis Sevilla.

With the guests from Andalusia, an opponent now travels to the Camp Nou, who even won only one of the past five league games. Away from home, meanwhile, the southern Spaniards have been waiting for a full success for more than two months.

Unsurprisingly, the general forecast between Barcelona and Betis Sevilla is for a home win, even though Barca has not necessarily covered itself with glory in its own stadium recently and has not even begun to exploit its potential offensively for some time now. Will we therefore once again see few goals on Saturday evening as part of the 32nd matchday in La Liga?

Barcelona – statistics & current form

Actually, the atmosphere at FC Barcelona should be pretty good at the moment. The Catalans are well on their way to knocking Real Madrid off their throne in La Liga and taking the championship. With a current eleven-point lead, everyone assumes that the trophy will go to the 1992 Olympic city in 2022/23. However, those responsible, the team and also the fans are very far from being completely satisfied.

The early elimination from the Champions League and the subsequent Europa League has left its mark, as has the defeat in the Copa del Rey semifinals against the archrival from the capital. In addition, there are the usual problems with finances and the accusation of referee manipulation. Not only the FCB from Germany, but also its namesake from the Iberian Peninsula is thus applying for the name FC Hollywood.

Barcelona remained without conceding a goal in 13 of 15 home games

The fact that all the side wars have also left their mark on the team has become more than clear in recent weeks. Only one win has come out of the last four league games. In addition to the narrow 1-0 win in the last home game against Atletico Madrid, the blue-reds had to settle for two goalless draws against Girona and Getafe and finally lost 2-1 to Rayo Vallecano during the week. This was only the second time in the league season that a team managed to overcome Marc Andre ter Stegen more than once.

The defense therefore remains the Xavi team’s biggest weakness, having kept its clean sheet on nine of the past twelve matchdays, conceding a total of just eleven goals, making it by far the most stable defense in La Liga, and it has only conceded two goals in 15 attempts at home.

In no less than 13 out of 15 cases, a bet on the 1X & Under 3.5 would have paid off at home, which is why we are quite a bit surprised that appealing odds in the range of a 1.70 are being called for this combined tip between Barcelona and Betis Sevilla. The isolated Under 2.5 also holds some value at top odds of 2.30, especially since eight of the last eleven Barca matches in La Liga have failed to exceed the two-goal mark.

Last Barcelona matches:

La Liga

• 27/04/2023 – Rayo Vallecano 2 – 1 FC Barcelona
• 23/04/2023 – FC Barcelona 1 – 0 Atletico Madrid
• 16/04/2023 – Getafe 0 – 0 FC Barcelona
• 11/04/2023 – FC Barcelona 0 – 0 Girona

Copa del Rey

• 06/04/2023 – FC Barcelona 0 – 4 Real Madrid

Betis Sevilla – statistics & current form

When we take a look at the impressive (defensive) statistics of the Blaugrana, who are still unbeaten at home, one can already feel a little sorry for the upcoming visiting team from Andalusia. In any case, it is absolutely understandable that the Barcelona vs. Betis Sevilla odds put coach Manuel Pellegrini’s team in the clear underdog role.

This is not only due to the home strength of the home side, but also due to the not very good condition of the team from the south, which has had to struggle recently.

Betis travels to Camp Nou without great hope

Just one win from their past five La Liga games is too few for the high expectations of the fifth-place team, who probably also threw away their last chance at the 2023/24 Champions League group stage in a 0-0 draw at home to fourth-place Real Sociedad during the week.

Complicating matters looking ahead to Saturday night is the fact that the last time the Green and Whites won an away game in the Spanish top flight was on February 24. Real Betis still have a balanced record away from home, but the 17 goals scored in 15 matches (6-3-6) impressively underline the fact that it could make sense to predict a home win between Barcelona and Betis Sevilla, including a clean sheet.

Since coach Pellegrini will probably have to do without some important players in the Catalan metropolis due to injury and, with the exception of a goalless draw at home against Real Madrid, has so far come away empty-handed against the absolute top teams from Spain’s top flight, it would be a real sensation in our eyes if the Andalusians were to take something tangible away from the Camp Nou.

Last games of Betis Sevilla:

La Liga

• 26/04/2023 – Real Betis 0 – 0 Real Sociedad
• 22/04/2023 – Osasuna Pamplona 3 – 2 Real Betis
• 15/04/2023 – Real Betis 3 – 1 Espanyol
• 09/04/2023 – Real Betis 0 – 2 Cadiz
• 03/04/2023 – Atletico Madrid 1 – 0 Real Betis

Barcelona – Betis Sevilla Direct comparison / H2H balance

From 113 first league matches FC Barcelona could win 70 (!). At home, meanwhile, the Catalans are even at 43 wins in 56 attempts. However, Betis Sevilla celebrated one of the only six away victories at FCB in the Spanish top flight last year, when a single goal was enough for a 1-0 win. The Andalusians also won at Camp Nou in 2018/19.

Two wins in four away games are definitely something to be proud of, but are by no means a reason to expect a surprise on Saturday evening. The Xavi team has been too stable in front of its own fans so far this season. Incidentally, the first leg was won 2-1 by the blue and red team. After seven previous duels in which at least three goals were scored, the last three times in a row the under 3.5 would have been crowned with success.

Barcelona – Betis Sevilla tip

First three games FC Barcelona has lost so far this season. All three bankruptcies go back to away games. One of them was a 2-1 defeat at Rayo Vallecano during the week. The La Liga leaders are now keen to make amends and maintain or even extend their reassuring eleven-point cushion over Real Madrid.

The chances of this are anything but bad, because in the Saturday evening match between Barcelona and Betis Sevilla, the betting odds are clearly in favor of the Xavi eleven. At the top, the three-way market is offering just 1.35 on the home win. Value? No chance! Consequently, we have to take a different approach to get more attractive odds.

Here, the combined approach of a good result for the home side in combination with an under bet immediately catches the eye. FCB played to zero in 13 of 15 home games, remained without conceding a goal in nine of the last league games and also surprisingly struggled to score goals recently. Exciting before the duel Barcelona vs. Sevilla is therefore the tip on 1X & under 3.5