Nico Williams sent off in Athletic Bilbao's 3-1 loss at Real Betis
Sun, Feb 25, 2024
Soccer News (AP)
BARCELONA, Spain (AP) - Nico Williams was sent off with two quick yellow cards to leave Athletic Bilbao with 10 players just before halftime in its 3-1 loss at Real Betis in the Spanish league on Sunday.
The Spain winger got his first card for a foul and compounded that by earning a second booking for his apparently sarcastic applause of the referee.
The loss meant Athletic failed to take advantage of Atletico Madrid's 2-2 draw at bottom side Almeria on Saturday. Athletic remained in fifth place at three points behind fourth-place Atletico. Betis moved into sixth, seven points behind Athletic.
Chimy Avila scored his first goal for Betis since joining from Osasuna in the winter transfer window to take the 13th-minute lead. Yuri Berchiche added an own-goal before Williams was sent off in the 40th.
Gorka Guruzeta's goal gave Athletic some hope in the 52nd, but Betis midfielder Johnny Cardoso added a third with a strike from the edge of the area in the 67th.
In the first half, an assistant referee had to leave the match after she ran into a television camera and cut her head.
LAST-GASP EQUALIZER
Darwin Machis' goal deep in injury time snatched Cadiz a 2-2 draw with Celta Vigo in a meeting of two teams in danger of relegation.
Iago Aspas and Williot Swedberg gave Celta a 2-0 advantage before Juanmi Jimenez pulled one back for the hosts in the 66th. Rafa Benitez's side was still eyeing a victory until Machis curled a shot in from the corner of the area just before the final whistle.
Celta, in 17th, remained the last team clinging to safety while 18th-place Cadiz was in the drop zone at three points behind.
"You think you have it in the bag, you are up 2-0, and they score two goals on plays we could have stopped, so it is obvious we missed an opportunity," Benitez said. "We didn't know how to manage those final minutes."
Leader Real Madrid hosts Sevilla later Sunday.
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