Deportivo Alaves – Real Betis

Deportivo Alaves hosts Real Betis at the Estadio de Mendizorroza in a match from the first round of La Liga. Let’s preview this fixture.

Last season Deportivo Alaves had a fight for survival and maybe this time it won’t be any different for them. At this moment the club does not have the potential to be among the best in the league, so what they usually do is trying to keep their place in the division.

Alaves start the new season with a new manager at helm. This is Sevilla’s ex-coach Pablo Machin who arrived at the Mendizorroza after the end of the previous campaign. His last stint at Espanyol was far from successful, but now Machin will have another chance to prove his worth.

On the transfer market Deportivo Alaves didn’t do much. They signed Atletico Madrid’s Carlos Isaac on a free transfer while they loaned for the season Palmeiras’ striker Deyverson and Sporting CP’s Argentine midfielder Rodrigo Battaglia. These look like good signings, but we shall see.

Real Betis are also having a new manager and he’s a well-known name in Spanish football – Manuel Pellegrini. The Chilean returns to La Liga after few seasons spent in the English Premier League. He’s surely a great coach, so Betis’ fans hope of a better season compared to the last one.

So far Real Betis signed only free agents on the market. They signed the legendary Chilean goalkeeper Claudio Bravo from Manchester City while they also brought back in Spain Brighton & Hove Albion’s Martin Montoya and Besiktas’ Victor Ruiz. These three players should help Betis with their experience.

Compared to Deportivo Alaves, Real Betis surely look like the team with a bigger potential at the moment. They made a very strong move by appointing Manuel Pellegrini, so let’s see how this is going to work out for them.