Real Madrid head to Estadio Benito Villamarin to face Real Betis

Friday 25 September

21:00: Eibar v Athletic Bilbao

Saturday 26 September

13:00: Deportivo Alaves v Getafe

16:00: Valencia v Huesca

18:30: Elche v Real Sociedad

21:00: Real Betis v Real Madrid

Sunday 27 September

12:00: Osasuna v Levante

16:00: Atletico Madrid v Granada

18:30: Real Valladolid v Celta Vigo

21:00: Barcelona v Villarreal

Monday 28 September

21:00: Cadiz v Sevilla

London, UK  | THE INDEPENDENT |  The pick of matches for this weekend sees champions Real Madrid head to Estadio Benito Villamarin to face Real Betis.

Los Verdiblancos have been a bogey team for the capital side in recent times, notably defeating Zinedine Zidane’s side 2-1 in their last meeting in March to extend their unbeaten run in the rivalry to three matches.

“We know the quality of Real Madrid, they are the champions for a reason,” said Betis manager Manuel Pellegrini. “It will be a highly technical game, one decided by small margins, but we must look to make the most of our strengths.”

One of the more interesting aspects heading into this clash is the future of Algerian defender Aissa Mandi, who has thus far refused to sign a contract extension with the Seville club and is being strongly linked with a move to the likes of Liverpool and Nice. His uncertain status means Pellegrini may opt against fielding him, but as one of the club’s best defenders, he will be needed to combat attackers such as Vinicius Junior and Karim Benzema.

Barcelona and Sevilla, after being given the first two matchdays off to have extra recuperation time from last season’s UEFA Champions League and Europa League campaigns, will have their first taste of La Liga action in 2020-21 when they face Villarreal and Cadiz respectively.

Barca’s clash with the ‘Yellow Submarine’ sees two of the most exciting young African-born attackers go head-to-head, with the former’s Ansu Fati and the latter’s Nigerian star Samuel Chukwueze, who has been tipped to continue his growth into a world class player by manager Unai Emery.

Sevilla, meanwhile, could field two Moroccan stars in goalkeeper Yassine Bounou and attacker Youssef En-Nesyri when they face newly-promoted Cadiz in an Andalusia derby at Estadio Ramon de Carranza.

La Liga fixtures and broadcast details, 25-28 September 2020

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SOURCE: Dstv