Simon Dalton presents his prediction for the La Liga match.
In recent weeks, both Mallorca and Real Betis have suffered several painful defeats, from which they are finding it hard to recover mentally. Mallorca endured three consecutive scoreless defeats in January, with a cumulative score of 0:10 — this match against a rival for European competition places will be another stern test.
Mallorca
On Monday, against Villarreal (0:4), Mallorca generated a meagre 0.39 xG, and in the second half, even with a substantial deficit, managed only one shot on target. Out of the top six, they have the weakest attack, with just 19 goals, and six of their 10 home games in La Liga have seen a total under 2.5. Likely, after the injury to key defender Martin Valjent, the coaching staff will play it safe and stick to their usual two lines (4-4-2).
Real Betis
Since the beginning of November, Real Betis have delighted their fans with only one victory in nine La Liga rounds. Disappointments against Real Valladolid (0:1) and Alavés (1:3) in the league were followed by an embarrassing Copa del Rey elimination to Barcelona (1:5), where Real Betismanaged just three shots on target in 90 minutes. Moreover, they suffered from poor conversion, having only scored 22 times from 32.75 xG (the worst difference in the tournament).
Mallorca vs Real Betis Prediction
Before their September meeting in Seville, where Real Betis edged Mallorca (2:1), their last three head-to-head encounters consistently went under 2.5 total. These two struggling attacks will likely not produce many chances against each other this time either.
