Real Betis travel to the Ciutat de València on 29 August 2026 looking to make it three wins from three in La Liga, while Levante host them still without a goal and sitting 17th on a single point. It's an early season fixture that reveals a lot about where both clubs are headed: Betis under Pellegrini look organised and efficient, while Levante under Luís Castro have yet to find a consistent shape under their new manager. Castro took charge in December 2025 after the club cycled through Julián Calero's dismissal and a brief interim spell shared by Álvaro del Moral and Vicente Iborra, whereas Pellegrini has been running Betis since July 2020, reaching his 100th La Liga win with the club in August 2026.
Levante have lost one and drawn one across their opening two matches, conceding three goals and scoring none. A 3-0 defeat to Espanyol on 23 August, followed by a 0-0 against Osasuna the next day that did nothing to shift the mood, leaves them still without a league goal as they arrive here. Betis have gone the other way entirely, beating Valencia 1-0 and winning their other opener by the same scoreline, keeping clean sheets in both.
Levante will be without goalkeeper Álex Primo due to a shoulder injury, leaving Mathew Ryan to organise the backline and manage distribution in what could be a game where Levante find themselves chasing. Betis carry a longer absentee list, with Abde Ezzalzouli (knee), Aitor Ruibal (knee/meniscus), Giovani Lo Celso (muscle), Diego Conde (shoulder), Gonzalo Petit (thigh), Marc Bartra (foot) and Ángel Ortiz (hamstring) all out, losses spread across wide areas, central defence and midfield creativity.
Castro's 4-3-3 hasn't translated into actual chances yet, though Iván Romero remains the most credible route to Levante's first league goal, having scored 15 of his last 18 club goals at home. Ryan, stepping up from deputy, needs to be commanding against a Betis side with quality set piece delivery.
Betis's 4-2-3-1 uses a double pivot to protect the backline and let the front four rotate. Pablo Fornals is the one to watch, having scored against Levante both home and away and his habit of arriving late into the box is exactly the kind of movement a disorganised defence struggles to track. Antony drives at defenders and cuts inside alongside Rodrigo Riquelme, who makes a habit of arriving in the box from deep at the right moment. The reshuffled backline without Bartra and Ortiz gives Romero something to aim at, while Lo Celso's absence shifts creative responsibility onto the double pivot, which now needs to recycle possession patiently rather than thread balls in behind, with Ezzalzouli and Ruibal also absent leaving Antony and Riquelme to cover all the wide responsibility alone. Levante may press high early hoping to catch a reshuffled backline cold and the most interesting duel pits Romero's movement against whoever fills in at centre back for Betis. If Levante push numbers forward in search of that first league goal, Fornals arriving late into the space they vacate could be the difference.
Betis hold the better head to head record, with around 26 wins to Levante's 15 and about ten draws and they haven't lost to Levante in the last five meetings, taking four wins from five including a 2-1 win and a 2-2 draw in 2025-26. Ryan and the Levante defence will face sustained aerial pressure from Betis's set piece delivery, which matters more against a side chasing their first league goal. Romero's best chance comes when Betis lose the ball high and he has a run at a reshuffled back four with space behind but Levante need to actually finish those moves rather than letting them fizzle in the final third.
Levante 1-2 Real Betis. Levante should start well at home and Romero's home record makes a goal for the hosts entirely plausible but a goalless start to the season combined with Primo's absence points to defensive exposure that Betis's counter attacking structure is well placed to punish. Pellegrini's side has the organisation to stay compact and pick their moment even missing seven players and their two 1-0 wins suggest a Fornals late arrival or a set piece will be enough to settle it.
Ryan Baldi
Football Writer
Ryan Baldi is a professional football writer with years of experience and has been featured by respected outlets such as the BBC, The Guardian, Sky Sports, DAZN, FourFourTwo, ESPN, Yahoo Sport and Football365. He has also written several books including Arsène Who?.
