Two out-of-form sides will lock horns in Spain's top flight on Sunday afternoon as Osasuna prepare to welcome Real Betis to Pamplona.
Osasuna are without a victory in their last four La Liga matches and have dropped into 16th spot in the table, while Betis are just one point and one position above their opponents this weekend, having suffered three straight league defeats.
Match preview
© Reuters
Osasuna are in serious danger of dropping into the La Liga relegation zone, having only picked up 11 points from their 10 matches this season, which has left them just one point outside of the bottom three.
Los Rojillos impressively finished 10th last season on their return to this level of football, but there is no question that the team have had their struggles in the opening months of 2020-21.
Jagoba Arrasate's side have not been victorious in the league since beating Athletic Bilbao on October 24, losing three of their last four to Atletico Madrid, Sevilla and Barcelona during a tough run of matches.
Osasuna will view their next two games against Betis and Real Valladolid as winnable fixtures but consistency has been a real problem since the start of the season.
The Pamplona-based side have not actually beaten Betis in La Liga since October 2016, although the two teams played out a goalless draw when they locked horns in the corresponding match last term.
© Reuters
Betis, meanwhile, are currently 15th in the table on 12 points, just two points outside of the relegation zone, having won four and lost seven of their 11 matches.
Manuel Pellegrini's side showed plenty of positive signs in the early weeks of the campaign, but they have now lost five of their last six in the league to drop down the table.
The Seville outfit have not actually been victorious in Spain's top flight since the start of November, losing each of their last three to Barcelona, Athletic Bilbao and Eibar.
Having only finished 15th in the league last season, the fans would have been looking for an improvement in 2020-21, but the early indications are that it could be another frustrating campaign for the Green and Whites, who certainly have a squad packed full of talent.
Osasuna La Liga form: DWLLWL
Real Betis La Liga form: LLWLLL
Team News
© Reuters
Osasuna's injury list is fairly substantial at the moment, with Jony, Chimy Avila, Brandon, Adrian Lopez and Juan Perez all definitely ruled out of this weekend's contest.
Jonathan Calleri and Lucas Torro are both doubts, meanwhile, but David Garcia, Aridane Hernandez and Inigo Perez have all overcome recent issues and could be involved.
Jony's absence could open the door for Roberto Torres to feature in a wide position, while Enric Gallego could also come into the starting side in an attacking position.
As for Betis, Victor Camarasa, Sergio Canales and Claudio Bravo are all on the sidelines through injury, while Aissa Mandi is again unlikely to be available due to a recent positive coronavirus test.
Pellegrini has options for change with the likes of Loren Moron, William Carvalho and Borja Iglesias all pushing to be involved in the starting XI on Sunday afternoon.
However, the side is expected to have a similar look to the one that took to the field against Eibar last time out, with Joaquin, Cristian Tello and Nabil Fekir supporting Antonio Sanabria.
Osasuna possible starting lineup:
Herrera; Roncaglia, U Garcia, Hernandez, Perez; R Garcia, Moncayola, Oier, Torres; Budimir, Gallego
Real Betis possible starting lineup:
Robles; Emerson, Sidnei, Bartra, Moreno; Guardado, Rodriguez; Joaquin, Fekir, Tello; Sanabria
We say: Osasuna 1-1 Real Betis
Both sides will be desperate to return to winning ways this weekend, but we are finding it very hard to separate them. Betis arguably have the better team on paper, but Pellegrini's outfit have struggled to show consistency this term, and we are predicting a low-scoring draw in this encounter.
