Antonio Agredano
Updated Sunday, January 21, 2024-20:42
Barcelona
defeated
Betis
with a deceptive 4 to 2 after a match in which the locals had a team embraced by individual talent on the ropes after a proposal that was poor in offensive construction and fragile in defense
.
[Narrative and Statistics, 2-4]
The game had just begun when
Isco
drew a pass into the area that
Luiz Henrique
wasted with a Vaseline that went too high.
Barcelona defended softly.
The man from Malaga, with spaces, enlivened the stands of
Benito Villamarín
.
Ten minutes later,
De Jong imitated
Isco
's pass
, and
Pedri
did the same, throwing the ball over the crossbar.
They were the only two dangerous plays in the early stages of the match.
A tedious
Barça
, clinging to
Lamine Yamal
, and a conservative Betis, crouching behind waiting for the visitors' mistakes, gave the match a sluggish pace.
Chance opened the match.
In the 21st minute,
Gündogan
tried to change the ball from the sideline, but he crashed it into an opponent.
The rejection came clearly to
Pedri
, already inside the area, who only had to put it at the feet of
Ferran Torres
, who scored at will.
Betis
did not give up and rushed into the attack, trusting in the depth of its full-backs
.
Héctor Bellerín
and
Abner
centered what they could, but neither
Willian José
nor
Assane Diao
could beat their markers.
Xavi
trusted
Pau Cubarsí to make up for
Christensen
's loss
.
A 16-year-old center back who was showing himself confident, serene and fighting against the green and white vanguard.
Pellegrini
's team
did not get the ball and his attacks were enthusiastic but obtuse.
Isco
faded in the final stretch and the culé team finished the first half feeling good, comfortable on the pitch, with the game tamed and without any problems.
It was close to 2-0 after a great play by
Yamal
.
The youth player opened a gap in the area after an explosive slalom and shot powerfully on goal;
only the post prevented the goal.
Johnny Cardozo
, who accompanied
Marc Roca
in the midfield, was missing.
The center of the Betic field was a wasteland.
Without architecture, it was impossible to clearly reach Iñaki Peña
's goal
.
The break was a relief for the home team.
Diao
and
Willian
stayed in the locker room.
Fekir
and
Borja Iglesias
had the mission of shaking up the finicky Betic game.
Ferran Torres
gave no truce and wanted to put an end to any hint of revolution.
Yamal
reached the bottom and his center, so close, was repelled against
Rui Silva
's near post .
The rebound came peacefully to the forward who, without a goalkeeper and without opposition, placed the ball in the net.
Betis did not give up and pushed the team upwards
despite
the goal against.
In the 56th minute, after a muddled and poorly defended play by the Blaugrana defense, a dead ball fell in the area near
Isco
.
The midfielder settled in and with a low volley, with his left foot, shortened the distance for his team.
Draw and madness
The euphoria spread through the stands and
Betis
felt like they were floating.
In the next play, even though the hour mark had passed, a lateral cross reached Isco
again,
who got ahead of the defense and raised the ball over a doubtful
Iñaki Peña
.
The tie ignited the fans.
Isco
is the pantocrator of Villamarín.
Betis
is his
.
Like champagne at a party, if he's there, things are going to happen.
Xavi
took out
Vitor Roque
and
Fermín López
.
Barcelona attacked looking for the profile of
Abner
, who was greatly outmatched throughout the game.
Sokratis
and
Pezzella
performed despite the demands.
Betis seemed to have the game under control and was getting close to the goal, but
Joao Félix
, who had only been on the field for a few minutes, and was already close to ninety, ended the green-and-white illusion with a very tight shot against
Silva
's post .
With the hosts on top desperately looking for an equalizer,
Ferran
made it 4-2 in a fierce counterattack.
A prize for individuality to forget collective insipidity.