Isco Alarcón will undergo an arthroscopy tomorrow, Monday in Madrid, with the aim of resolving the intra-articular injury to the ankle cartilage that he suffered on November 27 in La Cartuja in the first minutes of the continental duel against the … Utrecht after a violent clash with teammate Sofyan Amrabat. There is no estimated time for the return of the Malaga footballer to training dynamics, but this intervention is considered minor and it is expected that in approximately four weeks he will be able to train again with the rest of his teammates under the orders of Manuel Pellegrini.
During these weeks the team has an important schedule ahead of it and will, once again, have to cope without one of its best players at the coach’s disposal. Seven matches between La Liga, the Europa League and the Copa del Rey in which Betis must not lose the objective set in all the competitions in which it participates, which is none other than to advance as much as possible in the cup tournament, obtain a direct passage to the round of 16 in Europe (it already has it for the play-offs) and remain in the privileged positions of the league tournament, getting as close as possible to the fifth position.
In La Liga, after returning to official competition after the Christmas holidays, Betis must travel to the Santiago Bernabéu to face Real Madrid on Sunday January 4. Then, after a blank week without a match in midweek, he will play away to La Cartuja again, this time at the Carlos Tartiere against Real Oviedo on Saturday 10. After the duel in Asturias, Pellegrini’s men will face the round of 16 of the Copa del Rey against an opponent who will be known in the draw on January 7.
The second round of La Liga will begin on Saturday 17 at home with the visit of Cartuja del Villarreal. The Castellón team started the championship as direct rivals to the Heliopolitans, but, with one game in hand, Marcelino’s team has seven points more than Betis. Then will come the first opportunity to confirm that Pellegrini’s men will be directly a team for the knockout stages of the Europa League, without having to play the uncomfortable access round in February. On Thursday January 22, Betis will play in Thessaloniki against PAOK.
The last two matches of January will take place against Alavés in Mendizorroza on Sunday January 25 corresponding to the 21st day of La Liga and on Thursday 29 in La Cartuja against Feyenoord, Betis will close the championship phase of the Europa League.
From then until today, Isco’s return remains a real unknown. In February, for example, there are league matches against Valencia, Atlético Madrid, Mallorca and Rayo Vallecano. If they avoid the play-offs to reach the round of 16 in Europe and if they advance in the Cup, the second month of the year is that of the cup tournament with the quarter-finals in the first week and the first leg of a hypothetical semi-final.
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