Manchester United will play the second and final of their mid-season friendlies on Saturday evening, with the 20-time English champions set to take on La Liga outfit Real Betis.
Erik ten Hag's side suffered a 4-2 defeat to Cadiz on Wednesday, while Real Betis played two friendlies against Colo Colo in the middle of November, losing 5-0 and 1-0 to the Chilean outfit.
Match preview
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Real Betis were last in competitive action against Valencia on November 10, suffering a 3-0 defeat to Los Che, which left them in sixth position in the La Liga table.
Manuel Pellegrini's side have won seven, drawn three and lost four of their 14 league games this term to collect 24 points, which is the same number as fourth-placed Athletic Bilbao.
Real Betis have also managed to qualify for the knockout round of the Europa League by finishing top of Group C, but they have only won one of their last five in the league, so the winter break came at a good time.
The Green and Whites actually played three friendlies in the middle of November, losing 4-0 to River Plate on November 13 before being beaten 5-0 and 1-0 by Colo Colo in back-to-back matches.
Real Betis have another three mid-season friendlies against Man United, Inter Milan and Atalanta BC before returning to competitive action on December 29, welcoming Athletic Bilbao in Spain's top flight.
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Man United, as mentioned, were in friendly action against Cadiz on Wednesday, suffering a 4-2 defeat to the La Liga side, who led by two goals inside the opening 14 minutes of the contest.
Anthony Martial and Kobbie Mainoo struck for the Red Devils to level the scores early in the second period, but the Yellow Submarine then went on to win it courtesy of goals from Ruben Sobrino and Tomas Alarcon.
This is Man United's final match before competitive action resumes, with Ten Hag's side set to take on Burnley in the fourth round of the EFL Cup on December 21.
The 20-time English champions will then be back in action against Nottingham Forest in the Premier League on December 27 before ending the year away to Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Man United were in strong form before the season was halted for the World Cup, winning five of their six matches ahead of the break, including a 2-1 success at Fulham in the Premier League, with Alejandro Garnacho coming up with a last-gasp winner for the Red Devils at Craven Cottage.
The result left Ten Hag's side in fifth position in the table, three points behind fourth-placed Tottenham Hotspur, who have played a game more, while the team will take on Barcelona in a two-legged Europa League knockout round playoff in February.
Team News
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Real Betis have had Youssouf Sabaly, German Pezzella, Guido Rodriguez, William Carvalho and Andres Guardado in action at the 2022 World Cup, with Pezzella, Rodriguez and Carvalho still at the tournament.
As a result, all five will be unavailable for selection here, while the La Liga outfit have injury problems in the shape of Juan Cruz, Joaquin, Luiz Felipe and Victor Camarasa.
Head coach Pellegrini will still be able to call upon a strong starting XI, though, with the likes of Nabil Fekir, Sergio Canales and Borja Iglesias set to feature from the first whistle.
As for Man United, Lisandro Martinez, Casemiro, Antony, Fred, Christian Eriksen, Harry Maguire, Luke Shaw, Marcus Rashford, Raphael Varane, Tyrell Malacia, Bruno Fernandes, Diogo Dalot and Facundo Pellistri are all absent due to their involvement in the 2022 World Cup.
Jadon Sancho and Axel Tuanzebe have not made the trip to Spain, meanwhile, but there is still experience in the squad in the shape of David de Gea, Victor Lindelof, Scott McTominay, Donny van de Beek and Martial.
Ten Hag is expected to name the majority of the side that took to the first whistle against Cadiz, although there could be a change at right-back, with Marc Jurado potentially replacing Aaron Wan-Bissaka, while De Gea might replace Martin Dubravka between the sticks.
Zidane Iqbal impressed in the first half against Cadiz, while Mainoo scored off the bench, and both players are expected to be involved alongside a number of other youngsters.
Real Betis possible starting lineup:
Silva; Montoya, Gonzalez, Ruiz, Moreno; Akouokou, Canales; Rodri, Fekir, Juanmi; Iglesias
Manchester United possible starting lineup:
De Gea; Jurado, Lindelof, Mengi, Williams; Iqbal, McTominay; Elanga, Van de Beek, Garnacho; Martial
We say: Real Betis 2-2 Manchester United
It will be interesting to see whether Ten Hag keeps the likes of Lindelof, McTominay, Van de Beek, Martial, Alejandro Garnacho and Anthony Elanga on the field for longer than 45 minutes, as they were all withdrawn at the break against Cadiz. If wholesale changes are again made at the interval, Real Betis could win this, but we fancy the spoils to be shared if Ten Hag hands more minutes to his experienced players.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Matt Law
