Arsenal vs Real Betis: Team News, Lineups, and Match Prediction

Arsenal Faces Real Betis in Pre-Season Clash at Aviva Stadium

After a strong showing against Girona, Arsenal aim to keep their perfect pre-season record intact when they meet Real Betis on Wednesday at Dublin's Aviva Stadium. The Gunners dominated Girona 4-1 in their opener, while Betis have already played six friendlies this summer, winning four of them.

Match Preview

Mikel Arteta has been pleased with Arsenal's start, including impressive performances from new signing Christos Tzolis and teenage talent Max Dowman. The Premier League champions began preparations with a closed-doors 3-0 victory over MK Dons and followed up by comfortably defeating Spanish side Girona. At Estadio Montilivi, 16-year-old Dowman impressed with a goal and an assist, while Tzolis, alongside experienced forwards Gabriel Jesus and Kai Havertz, contributed to the scoring.

This will be Arsenal's third game at the Aviva Stadium, where they previously drew 1-1 with Chelsea in 2018 and beat Dundalk 4-2 in the 2020 Europa League.

Though the focus is on the pitch, Arsenal fans remain curious about the ongoing Vinicius Junior transfer saga, which Arteta dismissed with a laugh when asked recently.

Real Betis, under Manuel Pellegrini, are well into their preseason, having played five games with just one loss—a narrow 1-0 defeat to Granada. They have defeated Lotte, Recreativo de Huelva, Lyon, and Almeria, with Ivan Corralejo scoring a decisive winner against the latter. Their fifth-place finish in La Liga last season secured them a Champions League spot for only the second time ever.

Betis' remaining preseason matches include tests against Arsenal, Bournemouth, and Inter Milan before their La Liga campaign begins against Real Sociedad on August 21.

This match marks the first-ever meeting between Arsenal and Real Betis, though a potential Champions League group stage reunion could occur after the draw on August 27.

Recent Friendly Results

• Arsenal: Win, Win
• Real Betis: Win, Win, Loss, Win, Win

Team News

Arsenal saw Kai Havertz, Viktor Gyokeres, and Piero Hincapie each play 33 minutes against Girona as part of planned substitutions. No World Cup players are expected to return for this fixture. Jurrien Timber missed the Girona game due to groin rehab but Ben White managed 61 minutes without issues following a knee injury. Young defender Marli Salmon could feature if Arteta prefers caution with White.

Real Betis defender Diego Llorente left their recent win over Almeria due to muscle fatigue but does not face serious injury concerns. Betis are missing World Cup finalist Giovani Lo Celso plus injured Aitor Ruibal, Diego Conde, and Abde Ezzalzouli. Former Real Madrid player Isco recently returned to preseason action and might start. Ex-Arsenal full-back Hector Bellerin could reunite with his old club; he scored two goals and provided three assists in La Liga last season for Betis.

Likely Starting Lineups

• Arsenal: Kepa; Mosquera, Salmon, Hincapie, Calafiori; Nwaneri, Lewis-Skelly, Havertz; Dowman, Jesus, Tzolis
• Real Betis: Gonzalez; Bellerin, Natan, Gomez, F. Garcia; Roca, Bernal; Antony, Isco, Fornals; Hernandez

Prediction

Arsenal have impressed with their youthful and dynamic attack throughout preseason, but Real Betis offer a stern challenge as fellow European competitors. Betis might face fatigue given this is their sixth friendly in a short span. We think Arsenal will extend their unbeaten run with a 3-1 victory over Betis.