The press like to refer to games as a must-win for a side in trouble, surely Pepe Mel, the league's finest fledgling novelist, will tell you there are 38 of them every season. Betis' campaign will not be defined by the next 90 minutes, but a win would have a balsamic effect on a team in need of a good rub recently.     

                In a first half that saw Betis grow in confidence after Madrid's initial flurry and as the away side's possession failed to bear fruit the Helopolis side leaped onto the counter attack and Beñat with an excellent strike meant we saw Casillas picking the ball out of the net from long range. Madrid seemed flustered following the goal until their composure returned towards the break, with the referee's assistant coming to the home side's aid as Benzema was adjudged to be offside. Betis rode their luck at times but the quality of defending helped to exacerbate their fans' amnesia following last week's pitiful display. 

                Betis at times operate like a washing machine put together from all parts by an aficionado inventor, there always seems to be a lack of unison about the outfit, as if each part normally works independently of the others, yet on the rare occasions when the machine does come together, Betis create genuine problems. When the communication nerve centre is off-line, however, most home fans immediately begin to fear the worst as they "surge" forward. 

                 From an anthropological sense, Real Betis could provide the basis for many psychology conferences. Barcelona like to use the slogan "more than a club" but with Betis the adage is true as often the football is secondary, some would say, accidental. The Betis' badge is similar to the Canadian flag lovingly sewn onto rucksacks, as much as it says "Soy del Betis - I am a Betis fan", it makes clear that "I am not a Sevillista" just as much. 

                Mourinho was forced to change things around in the second half, Modric and Kaká coming on to bolster the attack, and yet the home side held firm and even created chances on the counter attack. This barely seemed the same side that naively chased their rival's strikers a week before in a match that had it not been for Sevilla FC not being bother in the second half, they would have been lucky to get nil. Betis frustrated Real Madrid for large periods of the game, and although you always felt the equaliser was coming, they had made up with their fans and would no longer have to sleep in the box-room. 

         In the end we never got to find out what the Sergio’s mum worked as, but it was left in no doubt what the referee’s did. Sergio was lucky not to be able to pay her an early visit with 80 minutes gone as the man in the middle offered another helping hand to the defending champions. Less than a week ago this love affair had been severely tested, now they proudly brandished photos of their sweetheart in their wallets. Betis’ fans created a wall of sound, anything to stop the ball from entering their net, and as the clock continued to tick down, Madrid looked more and more out of sorts as Adrian commanded his area. And as the game drew to a close, once again Betis’ fans were reminded that love may be a fickle maiden, but when she smiles on you, everything else is forgotten. 

VAVEL Logo
About the author
Craig Cavanagh
Una perspectiva diferente sobre el fútbol en Hispalis y más allá.