Betis rose to the top with an unsuccessful win in Limassol

After leading 0-0 at half-time, Betis, with the superiority of Chilean Manuel Pellegrini’s team but without success, continued to take the initiative in the defense of the Argentinian German Pezzella empire, but they also played with fire, as just a minute before the goal Aris Limassol crossed over South African Mayambela He sent a ball to the post and hit the post with another ball at 0-1, headed by Polish Stepinski with 2 points left.

Two teams with the same desire to win to progress met in a highly compressed back four in Cyprus, and in the case of Betis, who were favorites after failing in the first leg in Glasgow, everyone ended up drawing 3 points two days later. Rangers (1-0), the rival of Aris Limassol, known as the ‘Cinderella’ of the group, made a big surprise by beating them 2-1.

Pellegrini revolutionizes his eleven During a visit to Alphamega Stadium in Limassol. The players who repeated the 1-1 draw in Getafe in the league were Argentinian Pezzella and midfielder Marc Roca, the team’s only pure defender in Europe, as Moroccan Chadi Riad was not registered due to Bartra’s injury. In the victory over Sparta, Prague was forced to fall behind the rear axis.

Also the big innovation was this: Isco Alarcón’s substitutionThe offensive reference and the best quality man of the green-whites, the man who has played everything so far and was given a rest by his coach, preferred Brazilian Luis Henrique and his compatriot Willian José, accompanied by two fast forwards at the top. Ayoze and Abde.

The Spanish team appeared to have fallen asleepHe was confused and took some time to adapt to the small field of the Cypriot team; Because his backside was fragile, he soon exposed his weapons: he launched quick counterattacks, including two shots from his sharpest man, Gabonese Shavy Babicka. It was his last in the 5th minute after cutting down Rui Silva and saving when Pezzella sneaked in.

The green-whites gradually compensated for their bad start. owners of the ballIt started to appear in some of the movements of Luiz Henrique, who was protected by the local defence, and Ayoze, who lifted the ball too much after Abde’s pass, was a good option to direct with command, although it was obvious that the match had changed and Betis had taken the ball.

Although Senegalese Gomis had a good chance for Aris Limassol on the half hour, the electric Babicka’s pass was once again blocked by Pezzella on the cross, with the Andalusian side taking control from half-field. He scored the points of the first half and looked for a goal in the 39th minute, without overwhelming his opponent, from a few corners or from Guido Rodríguez’s long shot.

The clearest opportunity came a minute later as Abde and Ayoze woke up in attack and the good connection between the two, but after a superb pass from the Moroccan runner, Canary’s first shot from the edge of the penalty area was miraculously cleared by Burkinabe Yago..

The first-half failure punished Betis, who did not change their approach after the restart. In order to avoid the counter-attacks of the team coached by Belarusian Aleksey Shpilevsky, he continued to have the ball without losing defensive concentration and created dangerous positions, especially due to attacks coming from the left. A very inspiring Abde.

The Moroccan made the warning with 2 minutes left in the period after receiving a great pass into space from William Carvalho. He entered the penalty area and his shot was cleared by Vaná.Although Betis insisted, being superior technically and in terms of creating from the middle of the field, Ayoze tested the Brazilian goalkeeper, who kicked the ball out with one foot in the 61st minute.

In any case, although there were changes in both teams, with Isco and the young Assane Diago joining the Spanish team, Borja Iglesias replacing Luiz Henrique and Willian José, and the Mexican Guardado replacing Ayoze and Carvalho, the game was still open and Aris Limassol, with its own vertical football He did not give up and in the 74th minute, South African Mayambela scared Rui Silva with a cross shot into the goal post.

Just one minute later, the possible 1-0 eventually went to 0-1, as Ayoze scored after some great play on the left wing. Abde finished the match with a cross that deflected Vaná’s goal despite the crossbar Diao grabbed the rebound and headed it towards the crossbar, so Ayoze put the ball into the goal for the third attempt..

From here, Betis checked its advantage without too much troubleThe Cypriots, full of belief and intensity, had not spoken their last words and were about to equalize with two minutes to go after a corner Polish Stepinski’s header just outside the area hit the post and this did not prevent Betic’s valuable victory.