Manuel Pellegrini was left with the pass to the next round after experiencing a difficult night and, above all, with the improvement in the second half that the Chilean coach observed in the game of his pupils. «We knew it was going to be a complicated match because they play on synthetic grass, to which they are more accustomed; because they are in a good position and because we are going through a difficult time. In the first half it seemed that the footballers were playing with a stone on them. We didn’t give three passes in a row. We fixed it in the second half. We had more football and we got the result forward,” said the Engineer in his impressions in the Narcís Sala press room.
After three consecutive defeats, Betis needed to breathe. A triumph that would restore his weakened confidence. He didn’t play well with Sant Andreu, but he won and sealed the pass. That is what it was about above all and that is also what Pellegrini understood in his analysis. «You had to win to pass. Victory always helps to improve and helps take pressure off. At this moment we have an absence of midfielders and that is noticeable in the game because we are not able to associate ourselves, we play much more directly and we lose the ball. We had to qualify to get out of this streak and regain confidenceto in what we can do,” he commented, also focusing his analysis on the midfield casualties.
The changes reactivated the team in the second period. He exhausted them very quickly to turn the trend of the match. «Mateo Flores came in very well and the game was controlled, with more associations. We had a couple more opportunities, they also had some very clear ones. In the second half we did improve a lot,” reiterated Pellegrini, who was asked which player would stand out from the rival team. «More than a specific player, They are a team that plays very well, which is associated with permanent mobility. They dare to touch and although they have not had much arrival, they have had the courage to play us as equals. They have a very defined style, they look for each other and associate, they are mobile and they play in synthetic grass with the advantage of bounce and speedwhich are different. It was what we expect from Sant Andreu. “They played a good game,” highlighted the Verdiblanco coach.
Sant Andreu had a very clear opportunity in the second half in a play involving several caroms and there were also controversial plays in both areas, apart from the penalty awarded: «Of course. If they convert it, they go 2-1 and the game changes anyway. There were a couple of conflicting actions in both areas: a shot that hit Sabaly in the hand and a foul on us in theirs. The penalty was saved by the goalkeeper, but Marc was attentive to score it and in the end we scored the third goal. There was a significant improvement in the second half that hopefully will be useful for the future,” Pellegrini concluded.
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