With Claudio Bravo on the bench, Verdiblanco’s cast beat the Yellow Submarine 1-0, courtesy of Rodri’s goal. The Engineer team is third in the table, with 12 points, behind the merengues and the azulgranas.
At the end of the Sunday day of the fifth meeting of LaLiga, Betis added another victory. It cost, however, he completed the task against a rocky rival like Villarreal. It was 1-0, for Manuel Pellegrini’s side to settle top of the Hispanic tournament.
The Verdiblancos, who lost their unbeaten record in the local tournament to Real Madrid (the previous week), entered the game after a strong start to the Europa League group stage, beating Finland’s HJK Helsinki with a rather alternative team. To face the yellow submarine , fired the star eleven, which had Rui Silva in goal. Claudio Brave, who made his season debut against the Finns, having overcome the troubles caused by the Fair play financial, He left the post to the Portuguese.
Leaving the Spanish giants (Real Madrid, Barcelona and Atlético), Unai Emery’s Villarreal is one of the most complex obstacles to overcome. In fact, he arrived at Benito Villamarín as the only LaLiga team without goals against. In an evenly matched game, the visitors could perfectly enter the break with an advantage, as they had the clearest options.
Betis managed to neutralize Villarreal’s intense start. The first from the local was in the 6th minute, via Luiz Henrique (the Brazilian right winger, who plays with a modified profile). Then, in the 10th minute, a high shot from Sergio Canales created a risk in Rulli’s goal. However, as the game progressed, Emery’s men captured the spaces left by Betis. At minute 22, thanks to a quick counter-attack, they almost opened the account but the Argentinian Lo Celso failed hand in hand with Rui Silva. The Portuguese played it and contained the action. Later, Gerard Moreno and Jackson also had goalscoring options, but they didn’t materialize. Betis didn’t defend well. Therefore, they suffered.
Fortunately for the Engineer, the panorama changed for the second half. With better ball control and a better defensive posture, the Andalusians planted themselves better. In the 56th minute, Borja Iglesias missed the opener on the scoreboard, deflecting a shot. It was a warning of what was to come in 61 minutes. Rodri, the left winger of Betis, connects a cross from Luiz Henrique, winning in the back of the yellow defense, for the local 1-0. With the advantage, the team of the Chilean coach knew how to better manage the match.
Villarreal’s attempts were fruitless. They failed to break through an orderly defense. For Betis, the slightest advantage was enough. They suffered from the epilogue. All held on their ground, until the final whistle. Relief for Pellegrini, who celebrated the victory with effusion. Betis reach third place in the standings, with 12 points.
After five games, the leader is Real Madrid, with an ideal score: 15 out of 15. In the first round, the meringues beat Mallorca 4-1, at the Bernabéu. Valverde, Vinícius, Rodrygo and Rüdiger scored for Carlo Ancelotti’s men. The escort is Barcelona, with 13 units. In other words, only the greatest of Spanish football are, today, in the team of the Chilean Manuel Pellegrini.
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Source: Latercera
I am Sandra Jackson, a journalist and content creator with extensive experience in the news industry. I have been working in the news media for over five years. During this time, I have worked as an author and editor at various outlets producing high-quality content that attracts readers from different demographics.
