Real Betis revive top four hopes with win over relegation-threatened Espanyol
As Real Betis looked to close the gap on LaLiga’s top-four race, a relegation-threatened Espanyol side on a run of five straight defeats stood in their way.
Predictably, the hosts dominated the early stages, and this could have led to an early goal through William Carvalho, who saw his curled effort well saved by Fernando Pacheco.
Despite facing a side that had produced three blanks in four competitive home games, the goalkeeper’s heroics continued to be an asset throughout a difficult opening spell for Espanyol, as Guido Rodríguez became the latest to be denied when his header was expertly palmed away.
Pacheco couldn’t keep Betis out for long, however, with Ayoze Perez breaking the deadlock in the 28th minute, slotting home easily from close-range following Luiz Henrique’s pinpoint pass into the area.
The hosts didn’t stop there, either, and soon doubled their lead through Juan Miranda just six minutes after Perez broke the deadlock. In a free-flowing team move, Perez turned creator, allowing Miranda to expertly finish into the bottom left-hand corner.
The break handed Espanyol some much-needed respite, and they seemed to have used the interval well at first, with the Catalan visitors halving their deficit through Cesar Montes soon after the restart.
Much more centre-forward than defender in the moment, he leapt in stunning fashion and acrobatically finished past a helpless Rui Silva in the 49th minute. Yet, Espanyol didn’t quite capitalise on the momentum gained, and Betis gradually resumed their former dominance.
Almost inevitably, Espanyol were made to pay for their lack of edge, as Betis sealed all three points in the 69th minute.
After being a menace all evening, Carvalho finally got his name on the scoresheet by finely placing into the bottom right-hand corner from the edge of the box, to finally end all question of an Espanyol fightback and secure Betis’ first league win by a multi-goal margin since last October.
In the end, Betis were worthy winners and kept their UEFA Champions League dreams alive, moving within three points of fourth-placed Real Sociedad, who were beaten earlier in the day by Athletic Bilbao.
At the other end, meanwhile, things go from bad to worse for Espanyol, and they will end the day sitting three points adrift of safety after a sixth straight defeat.
Flashscore Man of the Match: William Carvalho (Real Betis)