Tonight's game in three words? What a pity. What a pity that a sluggish start allowed Atleti to grab two scrappy close-range goals in the first 23 minutes; what a pity that half-a-dozen half-chances and a couple of full ones all went begging; what a pity that total territorial domination in the second 45 minutes didn't add up to the away goal that would have made all the difference. Everybody seems to agree that Betis's spirited performance, especially in the second half, deserved a better reward, but sadly that's not how football works. Thanks to their keeper Courtois, who made a couple of stunning saves from Beñat and Molina, Atletico Madrid will bring a decent advantage to Seville next week - but all credit to Pepe Mel's men for making them work for it. More tomorrow.
Betis: Casto; Chica, Paulao, Perquis (Dorado, m. 29), Nacho; Rubén Pérez (Nono, m. 78), Vilarchao (Cañas, m. 54), Beñat; Campbell, Rubén Castro, Jorge Molina.
Goals: 1-0, m. 11: Falcao; 2-0, m. 23: Filipe.
From what I saw last night, get the first goal next Thursday and it'll be all to play for.
Posted by: Andy | Friday, 18 January 2013 at 11:08 AM