Betis leave it late to break Getafe hearts
Betis began proceedings in assertive fashion, with David Soria forced to race off his line to prevent Los Verdiblancos top scorer Borja Iglesias from opening the scoring.
Hoping to extend their recent historical home head-to-head bragging rights to five matches, Getafe were forced to play second fiddle to their authoritative visitors as manager Quique Sanchez Flores watched on attentively from the home dugout.
In pursuit of only a fourth victory on the road across the current LaLiga campaign, the visitors were inches away from breaking the deadlock when Luiz Henrique headed Sergio Canales’s enticing cross fractions wide of the post.
That was the last real action in a half of few clear-cut openings however, as the teams headed down the tunnel level at the break.
Hoping to avoid entering double-digits for defeats in the 2022/23 campaign, Flores was the first manager to turn to his substitutes’ bench just after the hour mark, introducing on-loan AS Roma midfielder Gonzalo Villar into the fray in place of Angel Algobia.
Despite having failed to score on their league travels against sides ranked 12th or lower before this round of matches, it was Betis who then went close with their first shot on target of the second half as Soria acrobatically pushed away Guido Rodríguez’s long-range effort.
With time running out, Betis made the most of their momentum and were handed the opportunity to take all three points after referee Guillermo Cuadra adjudged Domingos Duarte to have handled in the area.
Having been denied by Soria in the first half, the Getafe number one was helpless in preventing Iglesias from clinically firing his side ahead with just four minutes left of regular time.
The late victory moves Betis within striking distance of Atlético Madrid, who occupy fourth position in the LaLiga standings, ahead of a mouth-watering clash against fellow Spanish football powerhouses Barcelona on Wednesday.
In contrast, heartbreak for Getafe leaves Flores’ side submerged in relegation turmoil after only registering one league victory in their last seven matches.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Borja Iglesias (Real Betis)