La Liga champions Barcelona will be aiming to return to winning ways when they face Real Betis in their penultimate match of the 2025-26 campaign on Sunday night.
Hansi Flick's side suffered a shock 1-0 loss to Alaves on Wednesday, while Real Betis, who have secured fifth spot in the table and subsequent Champions League football, beat Elche 2-1 last time out.
Match preview
Barcelona entered Wednesday's clash with Alaves off the back of 11 straight wins in La Liga, the last of which was a 2-0 success over Real Madrid - a result that secured the title with three games to spare.
Head coach Flick made wholesale changes against Alaves last time out and paid the price, with the Catalan side suffering a 1-0 defeat - their first loss in the league since the middle of February.
It is difficult to be critical of Barcelona considering what they have achieved this season, but they will be keen to finish the campaign with successive wins over Real Betis and Valencia.
Barcelona have incredibly won all 18 of their home league games this season, scoring 54 times and conceding just nine, demonstrating the size of the task for Real Betis in this match.
Earlier this season, Barcelona recorded a 5-3 victory over Real Betis in the reverse match, but it was actually 1-1 when the pair met at Camp Nou during the 2024-25 season.
© Imago / IMAGO / Pressinphoto
Real Betis will enter this match off the back of a 2-1 victory over Elche, and the Seville outfit are unbeaten in the league since March 22, winning three of their last five during a strong run.
Manuel Pellegrini's side were disappointingly knocked out in the quarter-finals of the Europa League by Braga, but they have qualified for next season's Champions League via La Liga, with fifth spot in the division secured ahead of their final two matches.
Real Betis have only lost seven of their 36 league matches this season, while they have the fifth-best away record in the division, claiming 24 points from 18 matches.
El Glorioso have only played in the Champions League on one previous occasion, demonstrating the size of their achievement, while it is just their second top-five finish since 2004-05.
Real Betis have not actually beaten Barcelona since a 1-0 success away from home in December 2021, although two of their last three meetings have finished all square.
Barcelona La Liga form:
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Real Betis La Liga form:
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Team News
© Imago / IMAGO / Pressinphoto
Barcelona will once again be without the services of Lamine Yamal, who is out for the rest of the season with a hamstring injury, but the Spain international will be fit for the 2026 World Cup.
The home side are otherwise in excellent shape, with Andreas Christensen back in the fold after a long-term knee injury, while no fresh injury or suspension issues occurred against Alaves.
Flick will make wholesale changes for this match, with Joan Garcia, Eric Garcia, Ronald Araujo, Gerard Martin, Joao Cancelo, Pedri, Frenkie de Jong, Gavi, Fermin Lopez and Ferran Torres all potentially being introduced into the starting side on Sunday night.
Raphinha will return to the squad after suspension and is expected to feature off the bench.
As for Real Betis, Marc Bartra, Angel Ortiz and Aitor Ruibal are out of the match through injury, while Cucho Hernandez and Diego Llorente are suspended for the trip to Camp Nou due to the yellow cards that they picked up in the win over Elche last time out.
Natan is expected to be the player to benefit from the absence of Llorente, while Hernandez's spot in the final third of the field should be taken by Cedric Bakambu.
Abde Ezzalzouli has been in excellent form of late, scoring five goals and registering two assists in his last seven appearances, and the 24-year-old should line up against his former club on Sunday.
Barcelona possible starting lineup:
J Garcia; E Garcia, Araujo, Martin, Cancelo; Pedri, De Jong; Rashford, Gavi, Fermin; F Torres
Real Betis possible starting lineup:
Lopez; Bellerin, Natan, Gomez, Rodriguez; Altimira, Roca; Antony, Fidalgo, Ezzalzouli; Bakambu
We say: Barcelona 2-1 Real Betis
We were close to picking a draw here, as Real Betis do not lose often, but Barcelona's home record this season has been absolutely spectacular, and we are backing Flick's side to navigate their way to all three points this weekend.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.