Real Betis have one foot in the Copa Del Rey final but all four teams are still in with a chance of lifting the trophy this year. In this article, I give you free betting picks for the Copa!
Who do Bettors Favour?
According to the best sportsbook sites, Real Betis are the team to beat in the Copa Del Rey. Holding a one-goal advantage from the first leg of their semi-final, they are looking like strong contenders to reach the final and are generally around 2.00. Athletic Bilbao, with their strong recent pedigree in this competition, is 3.50 with Valencia and Rayo Vallecano the two unfancied underdogs.
| Copa del Rey Winner |  |  |
|---|---|---|
| Real Betis | 2.03 | 2.00 |
| Athletic Bilbao | 3.50 | 3.25 |
| Valencia | 4.10 | 4.00 |
| Rayo Vallecano | 13.33 | 13.00 |
Betting on the Copa Del Rey
Traditionally, this tournament has been far less predictable than La Liga. Real Madrid, for example, has not won the Cup since 2014 and Atletico hasn’t claimed this silverware since 2013. In fact the list of winners of the tournament this century includes Espanyol, Zaragoza, Deportivo la Coruna, Mallorca, Betis, Sevilla, Valencia and Real Sociedad, in addition to Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid and Barcelona.
Of the remaining four this time around, three have won the competition before, while the fourth, Rayo Vallecano, has never reached the final, though such is the volatile nature of the competition, none of the four can be completely ruled out at this point.
Will Real Betis Win the Copa Del Rey?
Of the four remaining teams in the competition, Real Betis have the best league record. Third in La Liga, they have a real shot at Champions League football next season although they may well be overtaken by Barcelona and face a tough battle against several clubs just below them.
Also in their favour is the fact that they hold a 2-1 league from the first leg against Rayo Vallecano, having fought back from conceding an early goal. They will certainly be favourites to win the tie overall, and are likely to be favourites in the final, and have earned solid wins over Real Sociedad and the current La Liga second-placed side Sevilla on the way to the last four.
The question for Betis backers is how reliable they are. Though this has undoubtedly been a good season so far, they have shown plenty of inconsistency and appear to be the type of team that can throw in a bad performance without any warning. Given that their odds in the Futures market are very short, bettors won’t be getting much compensation to offset that risk, which makes Betis an unappealing pick.
Could this Finally be Athletic Bilbao’s Year?
Athletic Bilbao has a strong tradition in this tournament, but it hasn’t done them much good in recent seasons. The 23-time winners have reached the final five times in the last 13 years and have lost on each occasion, including the 2020 and 2021 finals. Four of those defeats came against Barcelona, but it is still a poor return for a proud old team like Bilbao to end up with nothing after five finals.
This time, however, there are signs that things could be different. Bilbao is enjoying an excellent season and remains firmly in the hunt for a European spot, and in reaching the last four of the Copa Del Rey, he secured victories over both Real Madrid and Barcelona.
Of course, Bilbao fans will remember 2020 final when their team lost to Real Sociedad, so nothing is guaranteed, but having gotten past Barcelona, there is a sense of destiny about this team.
Admittedly, their failure to take advantage of a one-man advantage in the semi-final first leg against Valencia was disappointing, but they are still level in the tie and will be confident going into the second leg thanks to their excellent away record. They’ve only lost once on the road in La Liga, and that was 1-0 against Real Madrid, so they look like an excellent pick at their current price.
Can the Underdogs win the Copa?
Valencia’s record in this competition is the polar opposite of Bilbao’s. They’ve reached the final three times since 1999 and have won the Cup on each occasion, the last time as recently as 2019.
Valencia fans will also feel confident going into the semi-final second leg thanks to their strong performance in Bilbao, which saw them survive with only ten men in the second half.
The problem for Jose Bordelas’ side is that they are completely out of form, having yet to win a league game in 2022, a run of form that has seen them slip into mid-table. They also had by far the easiest route to the last four of any of these teams, beating three lower league clubs and relegation-threatened Cadiz along the way. They certainly aren’t a team to rely on at their current odds.
Rayo Vallecano offers more compensation on that score, but their form is as poor as Valencia’s. They’ve lost four of their last six in La Liga, slipping out of the top five and have only scored once in the league this year. The prospect of a first-ever Copa Del Rey final will be a strong motivating factor, but I can’t see them overcoming their first-leg deficit against Betis, in their current form.
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