Betis won fairly and simply did what they had to. No more and yes much less than what can and should. But the Conference has I don’t know what for this group that doesn’t convince. It happened because it is better and because it was something that had to happen. He complied and nothing more. This duel against HJK Helsinki is not going to be remembered, far from it. Cardoso stood out and Assane was very active but that was the end of it. If anything, Chimy’s will. Minutes for them to seek vindication for some elements but a day for very few conclusions. As happened against Legia, Copenhagen, Celje, Mlada and Petrocub, Betis seemed not to want to step on the accelerator or show their best against an inferior opponent. A cold match but one that leaves a favorable result that allows the green and whites to go to the play off and await a rival between Vikingur from Iceland and Borac Banja Luka from Bosnia, with the return home, being fourteenth, and avoiding Chelsea and would find themselves to Vitoria de Guimaraes or Fiorentina in the round of 16. And that’s it.
Because it was a duel that was too close, too competitive, for what Betis can do with these rivals, for what it shows in LaLiga and is not capable of transferring to Europe. Neither with headlines, nor with rotations, nor with harangues, nor with thick words like final or decisive. Nothing, there is no way to get the motivation out of this team to enjoy a quiet and festive European night.
The energy that Betis shows in LaLiga is lost when it puts on the Conference patch and although it is better, it is difficult for it to show it against rivals who obviously have playing problems. It’s not that Pellegrini’s team generates a brilliant game, the truth is, and that is permanently in their responsibility. There is also reference to the casualties, which are concentrated in that area of creativity in which Lo Celso, Isco, Fornals or William Carvalho could stand out. And none of them were up to dressing short on a day like that. In this way, all the keys were held by direct play, personalized in Assane’s careers, Aitor’s split and Chimy’s will, because Abde and Bakambu were off. In any case, the support of the team was in the forward and decisive defense and in the ascendant role of Johnny Cardoso and Altimira, undisputed starters today in this team.
Bakambu is a want and I can’t and Assane shows legs from the first minute to give Pallas, his marker, headaches. Between Chimy and Aitor they are clumsy and give HJK a strong shot, which Adrián resolves with a clearance. Then comes a phase in which Betis locks down its rival more through pressure and strength than through talent. From there come combinations in which Aitor gains presence and, above all, the decisive high steal by Johnny Cardoso when the visiting goalkeeper was looking for his midfielder to come out touching her. A failure of modern football and a success of that pressure from the American, who dribbles past the goal and before scoring at will he has to get rid of Bakambu, who is getting in the way in the area. The 1-0 opens the spigot and Assane runs on a counterattack looking for 2-0 but his shot narrowly misses. Then came a centered shot from Chimy that the Finnish goalkeeper was able to interpret.
It won’t be a siege by Betis before the break either, and it is good for them to score more than one goal to look for more advantageous positions at the crossroads of the February play off. It happens that the HJK gets organized and the Betis are looking to do damage but without much continuity. It’s not Abde’s day but neither is Natan’s, quite insecure at the back. The stands want more and that is what they hope to see after the break, to ensure the duel and to justify the effort in the cold of this December night.
An opportunity that deserved 2-0 is again called when Cardoso breaks through the center after a wall with Bakambu, opens up Abde and the latter’s center returns to the Congolese, who shoots but the HJK goalkeeper clears it for a corner. It is a phase in which the green and white team are masters of the ball and the pace of the game, they are looking for second to climb further places in the standings and avoid Chelsea in the first crossings. A good cross after a foul on Aitor, launched by Chimy, was headed by Bakambu, anticipating the goalkeeper, but it came to nothing.
It was not Abde’s day and Pellegrini chose him as the first change. Jesús Rodríguez comes out to refresh the left wing. I really want to see the kid. Cardoso continues to do his thing with the management of the game and always equipped with the best choices in each action. A moment later Altimira had a clear shot from the edge of the area with a loose ball but his shot was very centered. The duel opens a little with the step forward of HJK, who tests from afar if Adrián is still in the match. Assane shoots low from the edge of the area but goes for a corner just off the post after hitting an opponent. The youth winger doesn’t quite hit the mark but he is very active in the game. They look for him and he finds solutions, although sometimes uncontrolled. Pellegrini replaces him after demanding a penalty in an action that ends in his foul. Juanmi and Vitor Roque enter because Bakambu also leaves. Jesús Rodríguez changes bands.
Look at Betis in the Conference classification simulator and although winning is not negotiable, it can condition the subsequent path and find yourself with the bogeyman Chelsea seeing the rest of the results. Betis’ attempts are inconsistent and HJK suffers a final scare with a goal by Antzoulas in the 86th minute disallowed for offside. The same thing happened with Petrocub. And the stands penalize that with some whistles. And Möller gave another warning at the end but Betis secured the victory and went through with a home field advantage and through the part of the draw where they avoid Chelsea in the first rounds.
#Betis #complies
