Luis Enrique's side ultimately made rather hard work of obtaining their championship crown last term, with the trophy only secured on the final day of the season by a slender margin of just a single point – despite the fact that Barca had a 12-point cushion over eventual runners-up and El Clasico rivals Real Madrid in the middle of March. The Catalans were still the best team in the division and deserved their title, though - the 24th they have won in their history and eighth since 2005 – and it makes perfect sense that they are many people's favourites to finish on top of the pile once more in 2016/17.
Barcelona have strengthened their squad with the signings of midfielders Andre Gomes and Denis Suarez from Valencia and Villarreal respectively, central defender Samuel Umtiti from Lyon and left-sided full-back Lucas Digne from Paris Saint-Germain; long-serving right-back Dani Alves has joined Juventus after nine years with the Blaugrana, meanwhile, with Marc Bartra, Alex Song, Adriano, Martin Montoya, Thomas Vermaelen, Alen Halilovic and Sandro Ramirez also leaving the Camp Nou this summer.
Just like last term, however, the focus will be on Barcelona’s tremendous front three of Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar, who scored an extraordinary 90 goals between them in the Spanish top flight in 2015/16. Providing the South American attackers are able to keep themselves fit for the majority of the season (Neymar, though, will miss this game due to the Olympics), Enrique’s charges are sure to find the back of the net with regularity, while the addition of Umtiti – who will compete with Gerard Pique and Javier Mascherano for a starting spot in the heart of the backline – is a boost to their defensive options at the other end of the field.
Real Betis will obviously not be aiming quite as high as their upcoming opponents this year, but their 10th-place finish last time out – which was their first campaign back in La Liga after sealing promotion the previous season – shows they are moving in the right direction. Another top-half finish could be too much to ask in 2016/17 given that the likes of Valencia and Espanyol will be pushing for a spot in the top 10, although the squad has been bolstered through new signings Antonio Sanabria, Aissa Mandi, Felipe Gutierrez, Jonas Martin, Riza Durmisi, Manu Herrera and Roman Zozulya.
It is very difficult to look past a rather comfortable Barcelona triumph on Saturday evening, even if it may take a few weeks before the champions fully regain their rhythm after the summer break. Given that the odds on a simple home victory are so low, the correct scoreline market is the way to go for this encounter, with a 3-0 or 4-1 Barcelona win two of the best options. The match will surely produce more than 2.5 goals, moreover, while Ivan Rakitic could be a good-value choice for anytime goalscorer.
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