Real Sociedad 2-0 Real Betis: Oyarzabal on target as Erreala defeat Betis to move into the top half

Real Sociedad achieved a return to form in LaLiga by defeating Real Betis 2-0, marking their third consecutive victory at home, while the visitors extended their winless streak in the league to four matches.

Despite securing a win against Ajax earlier in the week, La Real was determined to rectify their domestic performance following a derby loss to Athletic Club the previous weekend.

The match commenced positively for the home side, as they took the lead within the first 15 minutes, even before a shot was attempted. Ander Barrenetxea connected with Aihen Munoz on the left flank, and his low cross was mishandled by Betis goalkeeper Rui Silva, resulting in an own goal by Diego Llorente.

The visitors' attempts to respond were limited to a few ineffective shots that sailed over the crossbar. The situation worsened for Betis just before the half-hour mark when, following an extensive VAR review, referee Francisco Jose Hernández Maeso awarded a penalty due to a foul by Romain Perraud on Mikel Oyarzabal.

The Spain international composed himself and successfully converted the penalty, marking his third goal of the season. The first half could have deteriorated further for the Betis goalkeeper when he was dispossessed by Brais Mendez, but the latter failed to find a teammate in a scoring position.

With only three of Sociedad's last 20 league matches resulting in goals for both teams, the outlook appeared bleak for Betis as they entered the second half.

Although they had scored in each of their previous nine matches, they offered little challenge to Alex Remiro in the Sociedad goal, with the first real test coming from a straightforward catch of a Jesus Rodriguez header after the hour mark.

Cedric Bakambu then attempted to make an impact with a header as the match approached the final 20 minutes, but his effort from a Giovani Lo Celso free-kick narrowly missed the target, going just over the bar.

Remarkably, the only attempt from the hosts, aside from the penalty, was Umar Sadiq’s shot from a narrow angle that hit the side netting. Nevertheless, Imanol Alguacil’s squad managed to maintain their unbeaten streak against Los Verdiblancos, which now stands at five matches.

On the other hand, Manuel Pellegrini’s team has not secured a victory in any of their last six visits to the Basque Country.

SportsLigue