MADRID, 6 Oct. (EUROPA PRESS) –
Real Betis coach, Manuel Pellegrini, celebrated his team’s reaction this Thursday in the second half against Sparta Prague to sign an important comeback (2-1) in the Europa League, with Isco setting the pace in his team. team, as he knew he would do since he spoke with him about his signing.
“It was a very positive game, not only because of the victory, which is always very important, but also because we knew how to correct in the second half the mistakes we had made in the first,” he said at a press conference at the Benito Villamarín.
The Chilean coach highlighted the role of Isco who marked the recovery of his team and was also decisive with the 2-1 header 10 minutes from the end. “I only talk about Isco from Betis and I am very happy with what he has achieved. It has been a personal effort. Maybe many people did not trust him or believed that he was finished,” he said.
“It took me three minutes to talk to him on the phone to know that he was the same Isco that we had in Malaga 10 years ago. He works hard, he is also very happy and he is giving us a dynamic that few players can give us,” he added.
On the other hand, Pellegrini insisted on his team’s improvement after suffering in the first half. “A game where they quickly took advantage with the ball behind their backs. From then on, they had control of the game. They didn’t get there but we didn’t have a good first half,” he said.
“We knew that they were a good team, that they had a lot of possession, but in the second half we absolutely corrected. We pressed a little and were more intense, we scored two goals and had more clear chances. You can’t always play 90 minutes well, the important thing is knowing how to correct it and the second half left me very satisfied because we were playing against a great team,” he concluded.