Inma Lidón
Updated Tuesday, January 23, 2024-23:47
Copa del Rey Quarterfinals
Recess is over for Celta.
Real Sociedad destroyed the hopes of the Galicians on their centenary and left them without the balm of the Cup that made them forget their miseries in the League.
With fewer doubts and more determination, the Basques hit a Celta in decisive moments that reacted very late, when the semifinal was in the pocket of the San Sebastián team.
[Narrative and statistics (1-2)]
The importance of the throw-in in the offensive game was reminded by Balaídos in the first minute.
It was the greatest weapon with which the San Sebastián team put Celta on the ropes and from where the goal was born without the duel having barely started.
Tierney
put the ball from the sideline into the area,
Starfelt
did not clear it and
Carlos Domínguez
, in his attempt to do so, gave it to
Merino
to telegraph the ball to
Oyarzabal
's head at the far post.
A chain failure cooled the celestial cauldron.
It was not in Rafa Benítez
's plans
, once again clinging to his rotations, to have to swim against the current so soon.
And the truth is that he couldn't do it in the first part.
Becker's stride
La Real, with the score in their favor, was practical and decided to have control.
He settled without much effort in the Celtic countryside and issued warnings.
Merino tried quickly, Starfelt had to correct a mistake by Carlos Domínguez in the ball exit that
André Silva
almost took advantage of and
Becker
, in his debut, showed his mischief with fast counterattacks.
It seemed a matter of time before Alguacil's team matured the result, even overcoming setbacks such as Tierney's injury.
Celta, however, did not react.
Without the ball, without ideas and without shots between the three suits.
The feat of the comeback seemed chimerical.
The Aspas resource
Benítez made his players react in the locker room.
There was nothing to lose, he gave command to Luca de la Torre and sent them in search of an equalizer.
Real was scared, locked in their field and seeing how
Risti , with a very distant direct foul, looked for
Remiro
's mistake
.
The pressure had to increase with the entry of
Iago Aspas
.
Against a Celta team in search of the tie that would give them life, Real had Becker's runs left.
From there he got gold when
Brais Méndez
launched the Surinian, who unleashed a right hand before stepping into the area against which
Iván Villar
could do nothing .
The road became steeper for the Galicians, who clung to Aspas's desperate attempts.
Alguacil
was already maneuvering to survive when De
la Torre
closed the gap.
Too late.