Real Betis – Sevilla: Unorganized Real Betis Punished By Sevilla (2-1)

Though Sevilla only won by a single goal, it could have been far more for the hosts. The first half saw Sevilla create chance after chance, taking advantage of the lack of organization of Real Betis’ defense, especially in transition moments. However, Sevilla found it difficult to finish off the vast majority of their chances, and they left a little bit of hope for Real Betis that they could sneak their way back into the match. Even though Manuel Pellegrini was much more aggressive in the second half, his men couldn’t find the back of the net aside from Sergio Canales’ ninety-fourth minute free kick.
Tactical analysis and match report by Charlie Tuley.

Sevilla have been in poor form of late, with the club having won only one of their last five LaLiga matches, as well as narrowly moving on to the Europa League round of sixteen after beating Dinamo Zagreb 3-2 on aggregate. However, their fine start to the LaLiga campaign has kept them well inside the top four, and they came into the derby against Real Betis with a nine point gap between themselves and (then) fifth-placed Villarreal. They also had a five point lead over their opponents (who were in third place in the league), with the chance to widen the gap to eight with a victory. 

It would be tough for Sevilla to get three points against Real Betis, as Lopetegui had a number of key players missing for the derby. Jules Kounde and Lucas Ocampos were forced to miss the match due to suspensions, and Anthony Martial, Karim Rekik, Suso, and Erik Lamela all out with injuries. Bono started the match in goal, with Jesús . . .