Real Betis 2-0 Granada
Under Manuel Pellegrini, one of the key developments of this Real Betis team is their ability to ride out moments of adversity. That was on show again at home to Granada.
Taking the lead early through Juanmi, he went gliding down the middle of the Granada defence before lifting the ball over Luis Maximiano in aesthetic fashion.
That was after just 13 minutes and Granada had plenty of time to respond, but wasted little in their attempts to do so. Luis Suarez had several chances in the Betis box but failed to connect cleanly with any of them. The best effort was deflected and struck the post.
Jorge Molina was also threatening and Granada came at Betis with all the desire and determination Aitor Karanka could have asked for. Only a sensational block from German Pezzella on the line came between Granada and their triple effort becoming an equaliser.
Los Nazaries showed they could create but as the clock ticked down, they were running out of time and the spaces became harder to cover. Edgar Gonzalez headed over from corner but when Juanmi broke in behind the defence in the dying minutes, he made no mistake.
Real Betis ensured they wouldn’t finish any lower than sixth, but the victory was a little tainted by the news they wouldn’t be finishing any higher than fifth due to Sevilla’s draw with Atletico Madrid.
For Granada, their heroics earlier in the week run the risk of being merely that. Just a point above Cadiz and Mallorca, a win against will guarantee their safety but anything less leaves them susceptible to the drop.