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Opposition lowdown: Real Betis
RCD Espanyol are on the road down to southern Spain next in LaLiga
RCD Espanyol make the trip to take on Real Betis on Saturday.
Luis García’s side travel down to Andalusia searching for a result that could take them out of the relegation zone. Real Betis come into the clash with consecutive league defeats, though remain in the European spots and two points clear of seventh.
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Name: Real Betis Balompié
Nickname: Los Verdiblancos (The Greens and Whites)
Manager: Manuel Pellegrini
Stadium: Estadio Benito Villamarín – 60,721 capacity
Last match: L 0-2 vs Cádiz
Current position: 6th
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The season so far
Having bowed out of the Europa League at the round of 16 stage, Betis’ focus is now on securing continental football for next season. They currently occupy the spot for the Europa Conference League, but they will certainly be pushing on to reach the heights of the Champions League.
Standout player
No-one has made more appearances for Betis this season than Luiz Henrique, who is impressing in his maiden campaign in Europe. The Brazilian winger has only missed four matches all season with eight goal contributions, as he continues to develop his game with every match he plays.
Last time at the RCDE Stadium
A spirited Espanyol performance saw them earn a big 1-0 win over Real Betis back in January. Martin Braithwaite’s first-half strike was enough to get the three points last time out, which made it back-to-back league victories for the Mágico.
Club links
Before arriving at Espanyol in 2010, Sergio García was playing for Betis where he netted 22 times across two seasons. It was at the RCDE Stadium where he had the most success though; the Barcelona native made over 200 appearances with just under 100 goal contributions across two spells in the blanquiazul shirt.