Football Bet of the Day: Trust in the Second Coming of Pepito

Pepe Mel is back at the Betis helm

After picking up a winner in Turkey last night, Kevin Hatchard's looking for more success in the second tier of Spanish football.

Real Betis v Sabadell
Saturday January 24, 17:00

After a frustrating week, we gained a small measure of redemption last night, as our old buddies Trabzonspor afforded us a tasty morsel of Turkish delight. Their 3-1 win over Sivasspor comfortably landed our Over 2.5 Goals bet, and we're back on track.

Talking of getting back on track (this isn't just thrown together, you know), Real Betis are producing an example of bouncing back that Alan Partridge would be proud of. Having been relegated from La Liga after a chaotic season that saw them spin the coaching merry-go-round, Betis have found calm under returning hero Pepe Mel.

Many Betis fans were outraged when Mel was jettisoned a year ago, and the decision proved the wrong one, as Los Verdiblancos were relegated anyway. After a vaguely successful stint at West Brom - although much derided, Mel kept the Baggies in the Premier League - he is now back with fans who appreciate him. Since the return of "Pepito", Betis have won three and drawn one of their four league games.

Betis are second in the Segunda, just three points behind leaders Las Palmas, and they have a great chance to pick up another win against struggling Sabadell. Betis have won seven of their nine league games this term at the Benito Villamarin, dropping just five points on home turf. They have won their last three home games, scoring six goals and conceding just one.

While Betis fans are dreaming of an instant return to the top flight, Sabadell fans are just desperate to stay in this division. The Catalan club are second from bottom, and four teams go down at the end of the campaign.

Coach Alex Garcia was parachuted into the hotseat in November, and results have improved slightly, with Sabadell losing just two of their last six games in the league. That said, Sabadell's away record is awful, with just five points collected from ten matches, and their improved results have mostly been against teams in the bottom half of the table.

If Betis play anywhere near their best, they should comfortably dispose of Sabadell. The outright home win is trading at an understandable 1.511/2, so let's boost that to 1.845/6 by backing them -1.0 on the Asian Handicap. If Betis win by a goal, our stake is returned, but a bigger win secures us a payout.

Recommended Bet

Back Real Betis -1.0 on the Asian Handicap at 1.845/6

2015 P/L (1pt per bet)

Points Staked: 12

Points Returned: 9.13

P/L: -2.87 points