X
Skip to content

Betis vs Frankfurt Game Preview, Odds, Picks & Predictions

Europa League Round of 16 Matchup Pits La Liga, Bundesliga Sides

Host Spanish Club Favored

Two of the most entertaining teams left in the Europa League, Real Betis and Eintracht Frankfurt, face each other on Wednesday in the first leg of the Round of 16. Our sportsbook is offering a great range of markets and props for the top European soccer leagues.

Real Betis: Out of Form

Real Betis somehow survived a tough Zenit double-legged tie in the Round of 32 of the UEFA Europa League. They advanced 3-2 on aggregate thanks to the victory in the first leg on Russian soil. The La Liga side failed to register a single shot on target in the reverse fixture at Estadio Benito Villamarin, where they got lucky to see Zenit’s 91st-minute goal disallowed for a foul.

Betis has seen a slide in their form of late
Cristina Quicler / AFP

Betis are winless in their previous four games across all competitions losing twice in the process, but they enter this clash as heavy favorites to win the first leg at -120 on the three-way moneyline according to the latest soccer odds. On top of an underwhelming display in the mentioned reverse fixture of the Zenit tie, Betis lost 2-1 to city rivals Sevilla, was kept to a 1-1 draw by Rayo Vallecano in the Spanish Cup, and lost 3-1 to Atletico Madrid on home soil, which dropped them out of the top four for the first time since November.

The hosts are one step away from matching their best-ever performance in Europe, which, to date, is reaching the Cup Winners’ Cup quarters in 1978 and 1998. Already this season, Manuel Pellegrini has led the club to the first Copa del Rey Final in 17 years.

They find themselves short at left-back with Juan Miranda and Alex Moreno both sidelined. Andres Guardado started at left-back on Sunday but was forced off after 11 minutes due to injury. Sergio Canales is fresh to return here after missing Betis’ defeat to Atletico Madrid at the weekend due to suspension. Rui Silva has recently lost his place in goal domestically to Claudio Bravo, but will at least hope to keep the gloves for their Europa League campaign. This is the first-ever competitive match between Real Betis and Eintracht Frankfurt. They only took on each other in a preseason friendly in August 2017, when Eintracht Frankfurt claimed a 3-0 victory.

Despite their poor run of form, Betis are one of the most entertaining teams in the Spanish top-flight league. They managed to contribute on the scoreboard in seven of their previous eight games across all competitions. This clash should be closer than the odds suggest. That’s why the smartest way to approach it is not to include the winners’ market in your soccer picks and predictions.

Eintracht Frankfurt: Revived

Following a three-game losing run in the German Bundesliga, Eintracht managed to return to winning ways last weekend by beating relegation-threatened Hertha Berlin 4-1 on the road. They return to their Europa League commitments, having gone straight through to the Round of 16 by winning their group. They won three and draw three in Group D, finishing above Olympiacos, Fenerbahce and Royal Antwerp.

As recently as 2019, the German outfit reached their first European semifinal in 39 years, beating Marseille, Lazio, Shakhtar Donetsk, Inter and Benfica en route. However, they missed out on a place in Baku courtesy of a penalty shootout loss to eventual Europa League winners Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.

Goncalo Paciencia carries over a suspension from the Group Stage of the competition and will sit out Wednesday’s game in Spain. Makoto Hasebe was fit to make the bench in Frankfurt’s 4-1 win at Hertha Berlin at the weekend while Martin Hinteregger recovered from injury to start. Rafael Borre ended a six-game run without a goal at the weekend to do his confidence the world of good heading into Wednesday’s game.

Stats are very important when you’re betting online. In seven of the last 10 Betis home matches, we’ve seen at least three goals on the scoreboard. The hosts have scored at least twice in 11 of their previous 20 fixtures across all competitions, allowing at least two goals in half of their games. We are talking about two teams with great attacking firepower and positive style, so we’re taking the over three goals in the match as our main pick.

Pick: Over 3 goals (+110)

Did you find this article interesting?

Comments (0)