Bet on Real Betis as Antony Improves Their Attacking Output

Real Betis are one of La Liga’s form teams and they can continue their winning run against Leganes at the weekend. Antony has been an integral part of their recent success.

The Brazilian struggled in the Premier League but is showing the sort of form that attracted Manchester United to him in Spain. Scott Thornton highlights how punters can take advantage of Betis’ and Antony’s form this weekend. 

Odds courtesy of bet365. Correct at time of publishing and subject to change.

Antony Driving Up the Data

Real Betis have won their last four matches in the league, meaning they now sit four points clear of Mallorca and occupy a guaranteed European place. La Liga could also secure an additional Champions League. The winner of the Copa Del Rey will also determine who makes it into Europe, so the focus for Manuel Pellegrini’s side will be to finish as high as possible.

Before Antony arrived at the club, Betis were scoring an average of 1.1 goals per league game as they struggled to break down the opposition’s defence. The average goals scored per team in the top tier of Spanish football is 1.3. A European chasing team should be looking to exceed that mark and that’s exactly what they’ve done since Antony joined. They are scoring an average of two goals per league game with him in the team. Pellegrini’s team are the biggest xG underperformers in the division, netting 35 goals from an expected goals tally of 45.57. Recent performances suggest they have gone some way towards remedying that issue. 

The Brazilian winger has already picked up three Man of the Match awards in La Liga. He has netted two goals and assisted another two in six games. Antony managed just two goal contributions in 29 Premier League appearances last season before struggling to get into the Manchester United team in the current campaign. He has grown in confidence at Betis and should prove to be a crucial player for them in the weeks to come. His dribbling and ability to get shots away on his favoured left foot will make him a thorn in the side for opposition defenders. Antony’s best display came against Real Sociedad. He scored and assisted a goal, stretching the opposition defence. His heatmap from the game is featured below. 

Betis were enduring a tough run before Antony made his debut against Athletic Club on February 2nd. They had picked up just two wins in 10 league outings, leaving them on the backfoot for European qualification. Now they’re enjoying a domestic winning run. The highlight of that run was a 2-1 win over Real Madrid at the Estadio Benito Villamarín. Los Verdiblancos had 18 shots, twice as many as the reigning champions of Spain, and thoroughly deserved their victory. 

A top four finish isn’t completely out of the question for Betis but with an eight point gap to Athletic Club, they’ll need to continue this tremendous form. 

Leganes in the Firing Line

Real Betis’ next league game is against Leganes, who are struggling near the bottom. They come into the weekend just a point above the relegation zone. Borja Jiménez’s side have won just one of their last eight matches across all competitions. During that poor run, they have scored an average of just 0.88 goals per game, which doesn’t bode well against a Betis side that are finding the net with ease of late.

Leganes were beaten 2-0 when these sides played back in September. They failed to muster up a single shot on target as they finished the game with an xG of 0.10. Betis had 14 shots, accumulating an expected goals total of 2.10. Despite the convincing win in the reverse fixture, Betis are a very appealing price and they are certainly in better form. 

BETSiE agrees the away side should go on to win this game. 

Antony has registered three goals and three assists in his last eight competitive matches ahead of the second leg of the Europa Conference League second leg game against Vitoria. Therefore, odds of 2.60 for him to directly contribute to a goal against a struggling Leganes appeal. 

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