Both sides are expected to line up in a 4-2-3-1, which sets up a fascinating midfield chess match. Pellegrini's double pivot — likely Bernal and Roca — will look to control tempo and screen the back four, while the front four of Antony, Isco, Riquelme and Parrott offers a blend of craft, pace and direct running. Isco drifting into the half-spaces is the kind of problem Deportivo's midfield two will struggle to track all evening.

Deportivo's 4-2-3-1 will probably sit deeper, looking to compress the space between the lines and spring counter-attacks through the wide areas. The Riazor crowd will demand intensity, and the hosts will try to make it a dogfight — second balls, set-pieces, and a low block that forces Betis to break them down patiently. But that is exactly the game Pellegrini's side are comfortable playing. They have the technicians to unpick a packed defence.

The key zone is the half-space on Betis's right, where Antony and Bellerin can overload the Deportivo left-back. If the hosts double up out wide, Isco finds pockets centrally. If they stay narrow, the overlap comes. It is a classic tactical trap, and Betis have the tools to spring it.