Real Betis vs Barcelona

Barcelona has not won a trophy since 2021 and Xavi, taking over as manager in November that year, will look for the first silverware under him.

And manger Xavi Hernandez has said winning the Spanish Super Cup this week would reinforce his project and bring calm to the club. The Spanish Super Cup is their first chance this season to prove the investment was wise and the project is moving in the right direction. “I have my hope and desire intact from the first day, I’m here to win titles and if there are no titles this season, you’ll kill me, that’s how it is,” Xavi told reporters Wednesday.

Spanish Super Cup semifinalists Barcelona and Real Betis open their tournaments in Riyadh on Thursday.

La Blaugrana has lifted the Super Cup on 13 separate occasions, one more than 12-time winners Real Madrid and 10 more than any other team to have claimed the prize in the past ever. 18 years on from the club’s most recent appearance in the Spanish Super Cup, Real Betis returns to contention against record-holding title-winners Barcelona on Thursday. How to Watch Real Betis vs.

Live updates as Betis face Barça in the 2023 Spanish Super Cup semi-finals today, Thursday 12 January 2023, at King Fahd International Stadium in Riyadh.

Helped, of course, by the fact that more clubs now qualify for the tournament, Barcelona have been absolute Super Cup regulars in recent years. Real Betis, on the other hand, have very little Super Cup experience. The captain's armband, by the way, features an image of Juan Miranda's winning penalty in the Copa del Rey final shootout against Valencia in April. After three and a half years in Seville, the left-back joined Premier League side Aston Villa yesterday. The first two were scored after utterly filthy passes from Ronaldinho and Xavi. Guys like Sergio Canales and Nabil Fekir are also looking to get the team playing. In 2021/22, they took a victory apiece from their two clashes in the Spanish top flight, with both teams winning away. “They like to have the ball. Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Xavi said of his fellow World Cup winner: “He’s so important. With just under five minutes to go until Carlos del Cerro Grande gets this semi-final away, here's a final look at the teams: We’ll find it difficult to get the ball off them. “It’s a big loss for us," the 69-year-old said.

Barcelona meet Real Betis in the Spanish Super Cup semi-final in Saudi Arabia with the winners meeting Real Madrid in the final. Follow all the action live ...

Lewandowski has twice been found in the box in as many minutes. 2 mins - Slightly chaotic start from Betis after a poor throw from Claudio Bravo is collected by Sergio Roberto. 10mins: All Barcelona in the early minutes here. as they look to set up a meeting with bitter rivals Real Madrid in the Spanish Super Cup in Saudi Arabia 15mins: Not Lewandowski's finest start to a match in truth. 22mins Much better now from Betis, as Fekir looks to round Ter Stegen on the edge of the box, but Araujo intervenes at the last moment. The ball is knocked back towards Ter Stegen, who hurriedly clears Not a huge amount of contact but Claudio Bravo allows it through his grasp into the net. 4mins: Ambitious from Luiz Henrique. 30mins: A great save from Ter Stegen! 33mins: Betis really could and maybe should be ahead now. The German gets a hand to the ball on the line and there is no-one there to convert the rebound.

Barcelona lead the La Liga standings, yet the Blaugrana will know their form outside of league play has been poor as they meet Real Betis in the semifinals ...

BT Sport site/app 75 mins to kick: Real Betis wasted no time in securing a replacement at left-back for the departure of Alex Moreno to Aston Villa. With the ball bobbling around, the Polish striker tries a backheel but he flubs it and the chance evaporates. The Blaugrana venture forward into the Real Betis penalty area, and while they can't get a shot off from the move, it was exceptionally dangerous! The Polish striker has his initial effort blocked by Luiz Felipe, but it bounces right back to his feet and he finishes around Claudio Bravo with a second chance. It's all a bit choppy at the moment, not necessarily as stop-start but instead thanks to the staccato nature of play by both teams. 74th min: Yellow card to Raphinha for an arm across the face of Juan Miranda in an aerial duel. With Ferran Torres all alone in the penalty area, Raphinha takes too long to loose the cross, and then goes for the outside of the boot cross which is in range of a diving Claudio Bravo to palm away the delivery. The Barcelona defence is all over the place, unable to clear the ball with multiple opportunities to do so. It's the second Barcelona goal of the day chalked off on a VAR review after Pedri's in the first half. Ferran Torres stole the ball back from the Real Betis back line and found Lewandowski centrally for the calm finish into the back of the net. Bravo (GK) — 24.

Real Betis vs Barcelona predicted line-ups Real Betis will start the game without their right-back Youssouf Sabaly, who will miss a month due to an an.

Fans in the UK wanting to watch the Supercopa de Espana semi-final between Real Betis and Barcelona can do so on BT Sports 1. The Supercopa de Espana semi-final between Real Betis and Barcelona will kick off at 22:00 local time in Riyadh. Xavi's men are in good spirits after defeating Atletico Madrid 1-0 away from home on Sunday, putting them three points clear of Real Madrid at the top of the table.

Barcelona lead the La Liga standings, yet the Blaugrana will know their form outside of league play has been poor as they meet Real Betis in the semifinals ...

Rodriguez — Henrique, Fekir, Canales, Rodri — Iglesias. 75 mins to kick: Real Betis wasted no time in securing a replacement at left-back for the departure of Alex Moreno to Aston Villa. Gavi — 22. Alba — 8. 9th min: Barcelona with the game's first corner, and 39-year-old Claudio Bravo comes to to punch. 15th min: Barcelona are running circles around Real Betis at the moment. Then, Sergi Roberto intercepts a Betis move inside the 18-yard-box and touches it back to ter Stegen, but the Barcelona goalkeeper has to clear it with a slide. ter Stegen (GK) — S. Rodri — 9. Rodriguez — 11. Miranda — 5. Bravo (GK) — 24.

The Spanish Super Cup continues with a second semifinal as last season's La Liga runners-up Barcelona take on Copa del Rey champions Real Betis in Saudi ...

— 1.57 / 2.25 1.60 / 2.19 -175 / +120 1.73 / 2.00 Rodriguez, Carvalho — Henrique, Fekir, Canales — Iglesias. 1.70 / 1.91 -135 / +100 However, Barcelona have been shaky in all competitions outside league play. BT Sport site/app While their exceptional start to the campaign has cooled slightly, Betis are still a tough out, unbeaten in Europa League play with just one defeat in their last five league matches. While Barcelona striker Robert Lewandowski is suspended in league play, he will be available for his club in this competition.

Betis came back in the second half, pressing Barcelona up-front, and Nabil Fekir slotted in a low shot just inside the far post in the 77th minute after being set-up by Luiz Henrique. Lewandowski thought he had put Barca back in front with a strike three ...

"It was a very difficult match mainly after the break because they dominated possession and made it really though for us. [Luiz Henrique](https://www.espn.com/soccer/player/_/id/304215/Luiz-Henrique) and [Rodri](https://www.espn.com/soccer/player/_/id/231828/Rodri)'s bullet-like shots, [Ousmane Dembele](https://www.espn.com/soccer/player/_/id/229744/Ousmane-Dembélé) burst forward in a fine individual effort before he passed the ball to [Robert Lewandowski](https://www.espn.com/soccer/player/_/id/125824/Robert-Lewandowski), who beat goalkeeper [Claudio Bravo](https://www.espn.com/soccer/player/_/id/85373/Claudio-Bravo) from close range to score the opener. "I'm very proud of myself. [Nabil Fekir](https://www.espn.com/soccer/player/_/id/189025/Nabil-Fekir) slotted in a low shot just inside the far post in the 77th minute after being set-up by Luiz Henrique. "It was a beautiful match, one of those the fans show up to watch," Ter Stegen said after the match. [Marc-Andre ter Stegen](https://www.espn.com/soccer/player/_/id/140740/Marc-André-ter-Stegen) saved [Juanmi](https://www.espn.com/soccer/player/_/id/143643/Juanmi)'s and [William Carvalho](https://www.espn.com/soccer/player/_/id/157390/William-Carvalho)'s poorly-struck spot kicks to give [Barcelona](/soccer/team?id=83) a 4-2 penalty shootout win over Betis after the teams had finished level at 2-2 following extra time in their Spanish Super Cup semifinal in Saudi Arabia on Thursday.