A new international test has made it to Atalanta’s schedule for the league break: on the 23rd of December, Gasperini’s Nerazzurri will play a friendly match against Spanish team Real Betis. The match is to be played at 17:00 CET at the Benito Villamarin Stadium in Sevilla.
Bearing the official name of Real Betis Balompiè, the Sevillian club have the foundation date in common with Atalanta, as they were both founded in 1907. Throughout their over 100-year-old history, the palmares of the Andalusian side comprises, along with the league title won in the 1934-1935 season, three Copa del Rey (King’s Cup) lifted, respectively, in 1977, 2005 and, most recently, in 2022. They also hold the record for the first-ever team from Andalusia to have played in the First Division of Spanish Football and the first to have ever competed in the current format of the UEFA Champions League. As a recap of Real Betis’ achievements last season, in addition to winning the national cup on penalties against Valencia, they made it to the round of 16 of the UEFA Europa League and finished 4th in La Liga.
Home to Real Betis’ matches is the Benito Villamarin stadium, a venue with a capacity of over 60,000 spectators.
Since 2020, the team has been coached by Manuel Pellegrini; the Chilean manager is renowned for his vast international experience having coached teams such as Real Madrid and Manchester City during the course of his career. This season, after 12 matches, Real Betis currently sit third in La Liga with a tally of 23 points tied with Atletico Madrid and have already qualified for the UEFA Europa League last 16 having won Group C with one game to spare.
