La Liga matchday 2 has already begun, but one of the most exciting fixtures of this week is on Sunday as Barcelona host the Lily Whites after both lost their opening game. Barcelona started their campaign in the worst possible fashion as they lost at San Mames. Aduriz shocked the reigning champions as they slumped to a 1-0 defeat. Real Betis, on the other hand, were stunned at home by Real Valladolid.
So, without further ado, let's see how the last few meetings between the Catalans and the Green & Whites panned out :
5. Real Betis 1-1 FC Barcelona (La Liga)
Date - 29th January, 2017
Venue - Estadio Benito Villamarin
Goalscorers - Alegria (75') | Suarez (90')
Barcelona came into this game for all three points in order to temporarily snatch the top spot from Real Madrid while Real Betis wanted an improved result following a series of inconsistent performances.
Barcelona had a poor first half and Betis were exploiting the Catalans through some brilliant moves upfront. The first half ended goalless. Betis scored the first goal of the game through Alex Alegria, who scored past Ter Stegen from a close-range effort. Luis Suarez scored the equalizer in the last minute to save a point for the Catalan giants. An error from Nahuel, who gave away the ball to Messi, who assisted the goal for the Uruguayan. The game ended fairly as both sides settled for a point.
4. FC Barcelona 2-0 Real Betis (La Liga)
Date - 20th August, 2017
Venue - Camp Nou Stadium
Goalscorers - Tosca (36' OG), Roberto (39')
Both teams appointed a new manager for the 2017-18 campaign - Quique Setien (Betis) & Ernesto Valverde (Barca). It was the opening game of La Liga for both teams. Barcelona were looking to rebound from a heavy defeat to rivals Real Madrid in the Spanish Super Cup. Betis on the other side, faltered to a fifteenth-place finish last season and lost their bright youngster too, Ceballos to Real Madrid. Barcelona broke the deadlock in the 36th min when Deulofeu's shot comes off the foot of Tosca to flick past Antonio Adan. The Blaugranas scored the second quickest in the 39th minute through Sergi Roberto. Betis were unlucky to concede two quick goals but Barcelona deserved to win as Messi hit the woodwork thrice in the game.
3. Real Betis 0-5 FC Barcelona (La Liga)
Date - 22nd January, 2018
Venue - Estadio Benito Villamarin
Goalscorers - Rakitic (59'), Messi (64', 80'), Suarez (69', 89')
Barcelona slipped up in their previous game against Espanyol in the Copa Del Rey and were facing a tricky Betis side who were behind Barca & Valencia in terms of goals scored. Title challengers, Atletico Madrid, and Real Madrid both dropped points and Barcelona had the opportunity to extend their lead at the top of La Liga table to 11 points with a win. The first half was full and ended goalless. Rakitic scored the opening goal of the game sliding the ball past Adan. Messi scored the second Suarez scored the third, all inside 10 mins. Messi scored the fourth goal through a brilliant counter-attack. Messi was involved again as he assisted Suarez for the fifth and final goal of the game. After a quiet first half, Barcelona came back roaring in the second half.
2. FC Barcelona 3-4 Real Betis (La Liga)
Date - 11th November, 2018
Venue - Camp Nou Stadium
Goalscorers - Messi (68', 90+4'), Vidal (79') | Firpo (20'), Joaquin (34'), Lo Celso (71'), Canales (83')
Both Barcelona and Betis came into this game after drawing against two Milan sides - Barcelona drawing 1-1 against Inter Milan & Betis securing a point in a 1-1 draw against AC Milan. Betis opened the scoring through their former man, Firpo who is a Barça player currently. Barcelona were hit on a brilliant counter as Carvalho fed a through ball to Junior, who drills past Ter Stegen. 15 mins later Tello finds Joaquin in the box, who scored the second goal for Betis. Messi scored Barca's first goal through a penalty. Betis scored again as Ter Stegen couldn't catch the ball and palms Lo Celso's effort over his head into the net. Barcelona pull one back again through Vidal's tap-in into the empty net. Four mins later, Canales scored the fourth goal for Betis. Messi finds one back again in the 94th min but that isn't enough for the Catalans as they lost 3-4 at home to Betis. Betis secured their first win at Camp Nouin for almost 20 years and were thoroughly exceptional.
1. Real Betis 1-4 FC Barcelona (La Liga)
Date - 18th March, 2019
Venue - Estadio Benito Villamarin
Goalscorers - Messi (18', 45+2', 85'), Suarez (63') | Moron (82')
Betis came into this game having lost just once in their last six league games. Barcelona were on an unbeaten run of 15 games. Messi scored the opening goal through a freekick as he curled it effortlessly in the top left corner past Lopez. He doubled their lead in the first half extra time. Suarez makes dribbles past three Betis defenders and then hits the bottom corner past Lopez and extended their lead. Loren Moron pulled one back for Betis in the 82nd min but it wasn't enough as Messi scored his hattrick three mins later as he chipped the ball over Lopez from the edge of the box. Béticos fans gave Messi a massive round of applause inside the stadium, and chanted "Messi, Messi, Messi" after his third goal. Now that's what football is all about. Take a bow, Messi!
