Real Betis was brought back to reality on Sunday by a 0-2 loss to Getafe in La Liga, just days after earning a 2-1 win over Milan in the UEFA Europa League group stage.
Betis struggled to cope with Getafe's strong defence and aggressive attacks and their possession-based strategy did not seem to be working out, reports Efe.
Getafe's defensive approach proved efficient, especially in the first half, as Betis' best efforts were not enough for them to threaten the home side's goal except for shots by Portuguese midfielder William Carvalho and Spanish right back Antonio Barragan that posed no real danger.
Betis' attempts to turn possession into a goal were undermined in part by its midfielder Giovani Lo Celso, who failed to play at the same level as in the Milan clash, as well as the fact that Getafe's Nemanja Maksimovic and Arambarri dictated the play in the midfield.
Thanks to Getafe's pressure, they created two clear scoring chances with the first coming when Angel Rodriguez nearly punished defender Antonio Barragan for a sloppy pass, but he was unable to deliver.
Getafe had a triple chance as Serbia's Nikola Maksimovic tried his luck on a shot that deflected off Betis goalkeeper Joel Robles and was collected by right back Dimitri Foulquier, who fired into one of the defenders, while Spanish forward Jorge Molina then struck but was blocked by Spanish defender Marc Bartra.
After the intermission, Getafe scored twice in a two-minute stretch, the first time on their home field since August.
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It was Jorge Molina who broke the scoreless deadlock at the one-hour mark, making the most of a cross sent to the area by Spanish forward Angel Rodriguez.
Just two minutes later, Foulquier scored the second goal culminating an individual effort and Getafe managed to maintain the 2-0 advantage until the final whistle.
--IANS
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