Betis and Rayo Vallecano tied in the last game of the year (1-1) after an electric match, with both teams looking for victory from the beginning and in which the Andalusians took the lead with a penalty goal from Isco Alarcón, at 37 minutes, in his first start after his serious injury in May, but Isi Palazón equalized in the 51st minute with a great goal.
The 1-1 score leaves both teams in the middle of the table, who emptied themselves to try to tip the balance at the Benito Villamarín, with the Sevillians playing more elaborate football to generate goal opportunities that they did not convert, partly due to the great performance, especially in two head-to-head matches, by the Argentine goalkeeper Augusto Batalla, and the Vallecanos with vertical football and a lot of danger up front.
Two teams faced each other on a good streak of results, with five unbeaten games for Betis and four for Rayistas in all competitions, and they wanted to close the year looking to Europe. Both, in addition, arrived at the event after Betis qualified for the round of 32 of the Conference League on Thursday (1-0 against Helsinki) and with a draw the day before against Rayo in their postponed match in Villarreal (1-1).
Chilean coach Manuel Pellegrini presented seven new additions to his initial team. He lined up his two most creative players together, Isco – starting for the first time since his serious injury in May – and the Argentine Lo Celso, and the Brazilian Vitor Roque, very active, up front. Only Llorente, Altimira, Johnny Cardoso and Abde repeated regarding the European clash.
His counterpart at Rayo, Íñigo Pérez, revolutionized his eleven with eight changes in relation to the visit to Villarreal, with the return of the Canarian central defender Aridane for the Ghanaian Mumin, suspended, and of the captain Isi Palazón and the Frenchman Randy Nteka as more players offensive. They only kept the Argentine goalkeeper Batalla, the French central defender Lejeune and the Utrera winger Álvaro García, who was later injured and was relieved by Jorge de Frutos in the extension of the first half.
Betis started very concentrated and with great intensity, they attacked in a rush at first and in the first minute they seriously warned of their intentions through Lo Celso, with a high volley that was cleared with some difficulty by his compatriot Augusto Batalla, although the Vallecanos They also made their objective clear with quick exits towards the Vieites goal.
However, although the green and whites played the football when Isco and Lo Celso teamed up, always looking for the Moroccan Abde to overflow on the left and the mobility of the Brazilian Vitor Roque, the Madrid players defended themselves well, with order, and were scary from time to time. when, especially with the speed in attack of Álvaro García and the quality of Isi.
In the first half with few clear chances, and after Embarba's goal was disallowed due to a millimeter offside, the Andalusian team lacked ideas and finishing against a competitive, pressing and dangerous Rayo up front, but Betis found the goal in an action in which Álvaro García knocked down Vitor Roque in the area. The penalty was converted by Isco, in the 37th minute, fooling Batalla.
After the break, the Vallecanos continued with their philosophy: vertical football and pressure from above to force errors in the green and white team's start, which paid off 6 minutes after the restart when they stole a ball from the French full-back Romain Perraud and, with a spectacular left foot shot from very far away, scoring a great goal to make it 1-1.
Betis wanted to respond and in the first quarter of an hour of the second half they were able to find their reward in a header from Abde, which was cleared, providentially, by Batalla, and in a cross shot from the incisive Vitor Roque that went just wide. The Romanian full-back Andrei Ratin also tried for the red-and-white team, but his shot was blocked by Fran Vieites.
The clash was electric, with many alternatives and both teams trying to beat the other. Pellegrini made Pellegrini's offensive changes by bringing on Fornals – after two months injured – for a tired Isco and Assane Diao for Altimira, and then Ruibal, Juanmi and the Congolese Bakambu, who was not very successful in the ten minutes he played.
Betis had the victory in their hands, but the Argentine goalkeeper Augusto Batalla took out a one-on-one against Vitor Roque with his leg in the 76th minute and then, after a right hand from Perraud that narrowly went high, another to Juanmi later from a great pass from Lo Celso, the best on his team, in the 86th minute. Rayo also had their options and never gave up on taking the three points.
Thus, he enjoyed a double chance from Isi, the most in tune of the Rayistas, and Embarba with a quarter of an hour left that Vieites aborted, very safely, while in added time De Frutos, alone, finished high when he could have His team's good game at Villamarín was rounded off with the winning goal.
– Technical sheet:
1 – Betis: Fran Vieites; Sabaly (Aitor Ruibal, m.75), Bartra, Llorente, Perraud; Sergi Altimira (Assane Diao, m.66), Johnny Cardoso; Lo Celso, Isco (Fornals, m.66), Abde (Juanmi, m.81); Vitor Roque (Bakambu, m.82).
1 – Rayo Vallecano: Battle; Ratiu, Lejeune, Aridane, Chavarría; Pathé Ciss, Unai López (Oscar Valentín, m.66); Embarba (Espino, m.81), Isi (Trejo, m.81), Álvaro García (De Frutos, m.46+); Nteka (Camello, m.66).
Goals: 1-0, M.37: Isco, penalty. 1-1, M.51: Isi.
Referee: Víctor García Verdura (Catalan Committee). He admonished the visitors Pathé Ciss (m.26), Álvaro García (m.36), Isi (m.80) and Pacha Espino (m.94).
Incidents: Match of the eighteenth round of LaLiga EA Esports played at the Benito Villamarín before 53,121 spectators. The local player Aitor Ruibal was honored for his 150 games with Betis and at half-time there was a shower of stuffed animals from the stands to the pitch as part of their Christmas solidarity campaigns.
Match compact:
