Andalusian rivals Granada and Real Betis meet at the Estadio Nuevo Los Carmenes in La Liga on Thursday, with both teams seeking an upturn in form.

After securing an instant return to La Liga last season by winning the Segunda Division, Granada have struggled to find their feet back in the top tier, losing five of their opening six matches.

It has also been an underwhelming start to the campaign for Betis, who have only won one of their last six matches across all competitions and who are on a three-game losing streak away from home.

Team news

Granada have injury concerns in defence, with Miguel Rubio and Jesus Vallejo both expected to remain on the treatment table.

After losing three matches on the spin, manager Paco Lopez could be tempted into making changes, with the likes of Gonzalo Villar, Jose Callejon and Famara Diedhiou all pushing for places in the starting XI.

As for Betis, Nabil Fekir (ACL), William Carvalho (calf), Rui Silva (muscle) and Youssouf Sabaly (thigh) all remain on the treatment table, although the latter three are all expected to return to fitness over the next few weeks.

Over 3.5 total match goals @ 9/4

It has not been the return to La Liga that Granada were hoping for, losing five of their opening six games and it is clear to see where their problems lie, as they are conceding, on average, nearly three goals per game.

Scoring goals has not been such a concern, as Granada have put three past Mallorca and Real Sociedad and two on Girona over recent weeks, with four of their six games this season yielding over 3.5 goals.

Granada have actually scored more goals than Betis this season, with Thursday’s visitors netting in just one of their last three matches, while they have been conceding at an alarming rate on the road, shipping an eyewatering nine across their last two away fixtures in La Liga at Athletic Bilbao and Barcelona.

With Granada both scoring and conceding at a high rate and Betis’ defence looking suspect, this could well be a contest that yields at least four goals.

#PickYourPunt – Lucas Boye to score anytime & Guido Rodriguez to be carded @ 11/2

Granada strengthened their attacking options with the signing of Lucas Boye before the close of the transfer window and the former Elche forward has hit the ground running with his new club, scoring in two of his three appearances to date.

That includes a strike on his home debut against Girona and the Argentina international could be worth backing as an anytime scorer as part of a #PickYourPunt.

The cards market could also be worth checking out, after all this is something of an Andalusian derby, and one name that stands out is Betis midfielder Guido Rodriguez.

Heading into the midweek round of games, no player had picked up more yellow cards in La Liga this season than the Argentine World Cup winner, who has been cautioned four times from just five league starts to date.

Rodriguez also picked up more yellow cards than any Betis player in La Liga during 2022-23 and he has to be a prime candidate to get on the wrong side of the referee on Thursday night.