Betis defeats Valencia to keep Champions League hopes alive

Tue, May 10, 2022
Soccer News (AP)

MADRID (AP) - Real Betis defeated Valencia 3-0 in the Spanish league on Tuesday to end a four-match winless streak and keep alive its hopes of qualifying for the Champions League next season.

It was a rematch of the Copa del Rey final won by Betis in a penalty shootout last month.

Willian Jose, Sergio Canales and Borja Iglesias scored a goal each in the second half to move Betis within three points of fourth-place Atletico Madrid, which visits Elche on Wednesday. Betis is four points behind city rival Sevilla, which hosts relegation-threatened Mallorca on Wednesday. There will be two rounds left after the mid-week games are completed.

Manuel Pellegrini's Betis had been near the top most of the season but lost ground recently as it focused on the final stages of the Copa del Rey. It was coming off two losses and two draws in its last four league matches, including a 2-1 home defeat against Barcelona after conceding four minutes into stoppage time.

Betis last played in the Champions League in 2005-06, after it finished fourth in the Spanish league. It ended sixth in the league in two of the last four seasons, with its lone title coming in 1934-35.

"While there is still a mathematical chance, we have to keep believing," Pellegrini said. "All we can do is win our last two matches, even though we know it will be difficult for the other teams to lose points."

Second-place Barcelona later Tuesday hosts Celta Vigo to try to secure second place and a berth in the Spanish Super Cup. The Catalan club is four points in front of third-place Sevilla.

Granada, two points from safety, tries to move further away from the relegation zone when it hosts eighth-place Athletic Bilbao.

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