Legia Warsaw vs Real Betis Prediction: Double chance could be the smart play

Legia Warsaw and Real Betis collide in Warsaw for their Europa Conference league opener on Thursday (17:45, discovery+), with the home side looking to keep up their impressive home form. 

Their Spanish visitors have had a respectable start in La Liga with three wins and three draws from their opening eight matches. They are unbeaten in their last two outings and will be fired up for this European clash. Below you will find my Legia Warsaw vs Real Betis prediction, featuring match odds and team news.

Legia Warsaw vs Real Betis Odds

Legia Warsaw are 3/1 to win this game, which gives them a 25% chance of victory. Real Betis are priced at 4/5 to take the three points, giving them an implied probability of 55.6%. The draw can be backed at 13/5 (27.8%).

Both teams to score is marketed at 5/6 and over 2.5 goals is available at 10/11.

Real Betis midfielder Giovani Lo Celso has netted five times in La Liga this term. He is valued at 7/1 to open the scoring on Thursday, or 13/5 to score at any stage during the match.

Football Odds

Team News 

Colombian midfielder Juergen Elitim will be unavailable for Legia Warsaw as he has been sidelined with a knee injury he picked up during pre-season.

After making his first start since joining from Manchester United over the summer at the weekend, Maxi Oyedele will be hoping to keep his place in the midfield for the visit of Real Betis.

Centre-back Rafal Augustyniak could be returned to the side to feature in a three-man defence which could also feature Radovan Pankov and Steve Kapuadi.

This is a big week for Betis as they head to rivals Sevilla in La Liga on Sunday, so boss Manuel Pellegrini could opt to rest some of his key players on Thursday, so we could see a heavily-rotated side take to the field at the Marshall Jozef Pilsudski's Municipal Stadium of Legia Warsaw.

Leading marksman Lo Celso could be one of the players in question, but we could also see the likes of Marc Roca and Cedric Bakambu demoted to the bench on Thursday.

Former West Ham United midfielder Pablo Fornals will be hoping to start after being reduced to a cameo role in the win over Espanyol. Having won this competition with the Hammers two seasons ago, the 28-year-old could be a huge asset for Betis as they bid to claim their first major European honour.

Pellegrini is still without the services of Isco, William Carvalho and Youssouf Sabaly, with all three players currently confined to the treatment room. It is hoped that Marc Bartra could have a role to play after his own recent injury struggle, with the defender having missed the last seven matches.

Draw or Real Betis & both teams to score @ 13/10

I can't lie, the Sevilla clash for Betis is playing heavily on my mind here, as I'm sure it is for Pellegrini and his players. If his side is rotated heavily, they may not be as strong, which could work in Legia Warsaw's favour.

Earlier I mentioned that the hosts had been impressive at home of late - losing just one of their last six matches in all competitions at the Marshall Jozef Pilsudski's Municipal Stadium of Legia Warsaw.

They would be a tough test for a full-strength Betis side, let alone one that could be tinkered. That being said, this will be a test of the Spanish outfit's squad depth. I've said we could see Fornals come in for this match, which in itself highlights their strength, but the lack of clarity over who the other 10 players could be does give me cause for concern.

I'm sure if Pellegrini were to make several changes and things weren't working out in Warsaw, he could call upon his big hitters from the bench to make an impact from the bench. With that in mind, I think draw or Real Betis could be the way to go, and I've boosted the price by adding both teams to score.

Legia are going well at home right now and their chances of scoring will be further boosted if they come up against a second-string Betis XI.

Pablo Fornals anytime goalscorer @ 18/5

In West Ham's Europa Conference League triumph in 2022/23, Fornals contributed three goals in that campaign, including the goal in the semi-final second leg at AZ Alkmaar which sealed their place in the final against Fiorentina.

The Spaniard arguably offers the most valuable experience in this competition among the heads in the Betis ranks, and I predict that this can shine through on Thursday.

After only getting a short run out against Espanyol, he is likely to return to the starting lineup in Poland, and I think he can seize this opportunity. He is waiting to get off the mark in 2024/25 in all competitions, and this Europa Conference League opener seems the right time for him to get up and running, especially given his track record in this competition.

I think 18/5 offers great value for him to get on the scoresheet.

Offers

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