In the final match of the day in La Liga, Betis of Seville hosted Real Madrid. Zinedine Zidane made several changes in the composition of his team, especially surprising by releasing Luka Jovic from the first minutes. Madrid actively started the match and sent the ball into the net already in the second minute, but Benzema's goal was rightly not counted due to offside. Almost immediately after that, the hosts took control of the ball and carried out a series of cool attacks. One of them could have ended with a goal after hitting Sanabria with his head, but Courtois saved his team by reacting to this blow. This episode made the guests come to their senses and go on the attack.
In the 14th minute, Zidane's charges opened the scoring - Benzema removed Moreno several times on the backswing and shot to the near post on Valverde, who sent the ball into the goal - 0: 1. Already in the next attack, Ramos was obliged to double the advantage of his team, but managed not to hit the goal from a lethal position. The guests held the initiative for some time, after which they gave it to their opponent, dropping to their half of the field. Fekir could quickly equalize the score with an aimed blow to the far corner, but he lacked a little accuracy. A few minutes later, Sanabria pushed Casemiro through and shot on goal, but his shot was also inaccurate.
Manuel Pellegrini's wards continued to possess the ball a lot in the opponent's half of the field, hoping to open up the opponent's defense. Madrid were not particularly eager to attack, focusing on defensive actions. They were subsequently punished for this, and twice within a few minutes. First, Mandy closed Canales' feed to the far post - 1: 1. And then Courtois could not help out after a not too strong blow from Carvalho - 2: 1. After conceding two goals in a row, Real Madrid could not recover for some time, allowing the opponent to continue to control the course of the game. Closer to the end of the half, Madrid nevertheless went ahead and could even the score before leaving for the break. However, Benzema did not use his chance, breaking straight into Robles. The teams went to the locker rooms with a minimal advantage Betis.
Immediately after the resumption of the game, Madrid took control of the ball and managed to score an early goal. Emerson beat Benzema after Carvajal's cross and cut the ball into his own net - 2: 2. A few minutes later Karim had a great chance to score himself after Ramos served, but the Frenchman did not use it, breaking through the crossbar. A few minutes later the hosts could have scored thanks to the earned free-kick, but Canales could not throw the ball over the wall. Then the game calmed down for a while, after which it went on the attack again.
In one of the episodes, Jovic found himself in a shock position in the penalty area, but decided to give a pass to Benzema, but made a mistake in passing. A few minutes later, the Serb was again at the epicenter of attention. At first it seemed that he did not take advantage of a great opportunity to score without striking the goal, but thanks to the video replays, it was possible to establish that Emerson fouled him. The defender received a red card for a last resort foul, leaving his team outnumbered. Ramos almost scored from the free kick right away - the ball whistled near the post.
In the next attack, Benzema was obliged to score, but Karim blundered again, failing to properly hit the ball after a pass to Valverde. After that, the guests took a short pause before a new surge of activity.. During this pause, they could even concede after Carvalho's long-range strike, but Courtois coped with it, moving the ball to the corner. Real Madrid then went ahead again and soon got a chance to score thanks to a penalty for handing Bartra. Ramos approached the ball and confidently converted a penalty kick - 2: 3. Two minutes later, Isco almost scored - Robles saved his team, dragging the midfielder's kick.
Zidane's wards controlled the ball for some time in someone else's half of the field, after which they calmed down, giving the initiative to the “heliopolitans”. They spent several minutes on the wrong side of the field, but did not know what to do with the ball, never hitting the goal. In the last minutes of the match, Madrid still remembered the attack. Benzema could have scored just before the final whistle, but again showed terrible realization. The attacker missed the goal from a kill position after a pass from Isco. As a result, the team won an extremely difficult victory in the numerical majority, improving their standings.
In the fourth round, Betis will play with Getafe, and Real will test the strength of Valladolid.
Betis - Real Madrid 2: 3.
Goals: Mandy, 35, Carvalho, 37 - Valverde, 14, Emerson, 48 (own goal), Ramos, 82 (penalty) Betis: Robles - Emerson, Mandy, Bartra, Moreno - Carvalho, Rodriguez - Joaquin (Tello,.