La Liga: Tame tussle forecast as Levante take on Betis

WE'RE delighted to welcome WLB debutant Harley Dale (@HarIeeyy) to the site with a selection from Spain on Sunday standing out in the fouls market.

Levante vs Real Betis | Sunday 28th June 2020, 13:00 | La Liga TV

Matchday 32 of La Liga continues on Sunday and the early kick-off has sparked my interest, with Levante welcoming Real Betis to the hosts’ temporary home at Camilo Cano in La Nucia.

Typically, a league full of physicality, hostility and ‘stop and start’ style matches, I’m expecting a free-flowing game with both sides somewhat maintaining their discipline throughout the season.

In addition, both sides see themselves in mid-table, sitting relatively comfortably above the relegation zone and with too much to do to begin contemplating European qualifcation (so it seems). Consequently, the incentive for both teams to showcase a high level of physicality during this game isn’t compulsary so we could see a tame encounter play out.

Levante head coach Paco Lopez has incorporated a less aggressive style of play which has reflected on the pitch – committing an impressive low count of just 11.9 fouls per-game on average, ranking the home side 18th. Defensive midfielder Nikola Vuckevic is suspended for this clash, and he also racks up the third-most fouls per-game for the club.

Betis share a similar approach by committing a subdued 12.5 fouls per-game which ranks them 16th. Brazilian defender Emerson is also banned and is one of their more physical style players for the guests, making the most tackles and third-highest fouls per-game for the away team.

Santiago Jaime Latre is the middle man for this passive-predicted clash and his official stats correlate with both sides’ discipline, averaging just 25.69 fouls and ranking him 16th out of a possible 20 for the foul count.

Levante have seen Under 26.5 Fouls in 11 of their 15 home encounters this season and, as a result, I expect that to continue against a Betis side who oppose the holy grail of adopting a physical approach in La Liga. Therefore, Under 26.5 Fouls (17/20 Virginbet) is my preferred play.