Real Betis Balompie 2007-2008 Thread (R)

The same thing happened to Oliviera and he had a short term falling out with Lopera which turned into slap in the face for Lopera and was one of the contributing reasons for Oliveira's exit from the club, when it became evident that indeed the price that is listed on the inscription for the player in the LFP was a much reduced price since there was a significant amount of money that was passed under the table to avoid taxes and other legal implications.


Viva Er Beti Manque Lopera!!

Er Pichi

It shows that Chaparro is a good coach, Betis B since his departure has picked up 3 out of a possible 18 points and has dropped from first to seventh place in Segunda B Group IV. Problem with Chaparro is that the locker room is plagued with players who don't bleed green and white and frankly don't belong in primera division based on their play. We have Lolo to thank for that! Marcelino who is having a great year with Racing told Lolo this summer when there was talk of him taking over the coaching slot that he'd need 10-12 new players on the squad because he knew that most of the current players would have a hard time getting a spot on a second division team. But Lolo would have none of that talk and we got stuck with Cuper and those 10-12 players that should be in Segunda unfortunately are still wearing green and white jerseys!

Having lived in Germany for three years the last thing you want to be doing between late December and the end of January is playing soccer as most pitches are frozen solid and are covered with snow. I know that MLS teams head to Spain now also to do pre-season training as the MLS starts in early April.

Viva Er Beti Manque Lopera!

Er Pichi

Real Betis v Recreativo Huelva: Preview

SEVILLE, January 19 (Primera Liga) - With their Copa del Rey adventures now over, local rivals Real Betis and Recreativo Huelva return to their Primera Liga relegation fight this weekend with an Andalusian derby at the Manuel Ruiz de Lopera.

Betis climbed out of the bottom three last weekend with a 3-2 home win over Getafe, but they suffered a setback in midweek when Valencia knocked them out of the last 16 of the cup with 2-1 victory at the Mestalla.

That loss was Betis` third in their last four games - two against Valencia in the cup and one against neighbours Sevilla in the league - and during that run of matches they have conceded nine goals.

Betis coach Paco Chaparro will be hoping for better against a Recre side that have the second-worst goalscoring record after bottom club Levante this season, but he admits it may not be all that easy.

``We have a lot of problems in defence, because Juanito is banned and added to that Lima has been injured and cannot play,'' said Chaparro, who was already without injured defenders David Rivas, Nano and Fernando Vega.

Also missing for Betis is suspended striker Xisco, as well as injured goalkeeper Antonio Doblas.

On opponents Recre, who are one place below Betis in 17th but level on 21 points, Chaparro said: ``I have seen four or five of their games and they have been doing really well.

``We are going to have to work extremely hard to beat them.

``Our opponents have different characteristics to Getafe, but they are going to create problems for us.

``If we win, having drawn at their place, we would have claimed four points against them and it would be a big boost for us and give us confidence.

``We are pleased to be out of the bottom three, but there is plenty more work to be done, starting on Sunday. We are at home and need the points.''

Recre`s precarious position just above the relegation does not tell the whole story, as Victor Munoz`s side are actually in decent form.

Last weekend`s 3-1 defeat at Real Valladolid was only their second loss in 11 league and cup games, with that other setback coming against Barcelona at the Nou Camp.

Recre were also knocked out of the Copa del Rey by Villarreal in midweek, although the high-flying Yellow Submarine needed an extra-time goal from Giuseppe Rossi to see off Munoz`s men.

While former Real Zaragoza, Villarreal and Panathinaikos boss Munoz admits his side can ill afford to slip-up against Betis, he has tried to ease the stress on his players.

``It is an important game but it is not decisive,'' he said. ``If we classed every game like that, in the end we would create even more pressure for ourselves.

``We have to play with the necessary intensity, but not put pressure on ourselves, instead putting it on our opponents. This is the pressure that matters to us,'' added Munoz, who is without Pampa Calvo and Iago Bouzon, while Quique Alvarez is a doubt.

Real Betis 1 Recreativo de Huelva 1

1-0 Edu 57'
1-1 Javi Guerrero 58'

Both teams needed the victory and from what I heard on the radio the tie reflects the poor play and quality of both teams. After his tie both teams move down one slot with Recreativo in 17th place and Betis in 16th place with 22 points the same as 18th place Murcia and 15th place Athletic.

Viva Er Beti Manque Lopera!

Er Pichi

The Chaparro effect continues and unlike our crosstown rivals we didn't need the help of the ref in the 90th minute to win our game!! With the win and Bilbao currently losing 0-1 with Barca, Betis moves up to 14th place with 25 points.

Viva Er Beti Manque Lopera!

Er Pichi


Espanyol 1 Real Betis 2

0-1 Rivera 45'
1-1 Luis Garcia 56'
1-2 Edu 90'

BARCELONA, January 27 (Primera Liga) - Espanyol's poor run of form continued as they slipped to a third consecutive Primera Liga defeat at the hands of lowly Real Betis on Sunday.

Edu scored in the dying seconds to snatch all three points after Luis Garcia had earlier cancelled out Alberto Rivera's opener for Betis.

Espanyol had looked a decent bet for a place in the Champions League having gone 17 games unbeaten earlier in the season, but came into this game on the back of defeats at Almeria and Real Valladolid.

The Barcelona-based side also lost captain Raul Tamudo for up to two months this week after their talismanic striker suffered a broken arm in training.

With playmaker Ivan De La Pena still unfit to start and Moises Hurtado suspended, coach Ernesto Valverde admitted that preparations for the match were far from ideal.

However, Valverde called for his side to rediscover the form which saw them climb to third place just a few weeks ago, and despite their absences, Espanyol started well.

Luis Garcia saw his shot deflected wide for a corner in the very first minute and Ricardo then saved Valdo's stinging drive in the home side's next attack.

Valdo threatened again on four minutes, but this time saw his shot sail over the bar.

Betis were all at sea at this stage and were happy to hold on as best they could as the home side pushed for a breakthrough.

Jonathan Soriano almost got it on seven minutes but saw his lobbed effort brilliantly saved by Ricardo.

Having weathered that period of sustained early pressure, Betis finally settled and attacked themselves on 13 minutes when Espanyol goalkeeper Kiko Casilla had to come out quickly to dispossess Mariano Pavone.

Casilla, making his debut in the absence of Carlos Kameni - in Ghana for the African Nations Cup - and the injured Inaki Lafuente, also did well to save from Abella Damia as the visitors began to dominate.

But Espanyol carved out a decent opportunity three minutes before the break when Albert Riera combined with Jonathan and the latter fed Luis Garcia, but the Spain forward was off target with his effort.

It looked as if the two sides would go in level at the break, but Betis snatched a goal just before the interval.

Arzu picked out Rivera in the area and the latter clipped the ball over Casilla with a neat finish to give Betis the lead.

Espanyol soon restored parity however when Luis Garcia took advantage of a badly-positioned wall to fire a free-kick past Ricardo on 51 minutes.

Despite that leveller, Espanyol struggled to find the form they showed early on in the game and Betis looked the more likely to find a winner as time ticked away.

Juan Pablo Caffa twice came close to a second for the visitors on 74 minutes and Edu headed just wide a minute later.

The Brazilian then saw another header saved by Casilla as Betis piled on the pressure.

Espanyol were left frustrated as the clock ticked down when substitute Ferran Corominas saw his effort come back off the crossbar.

And Edu eventually won the game with just a minute remaining when he converted Xisco's cross to seal an important victory and move his side three points clear of the bottom three.

Yeah and if the Che's keep their winless streak intact and Betis wins at home against Depor we will be ahead of the Ches as they keep sliding into that uncomfortable zone of the table!!

Viva Er Beti Manque Lopera!

Er Pichi

Great win tonite against the leaders. Betis was totally outplayed for the first 30 minutes, but then in what was probably their best 10 minutes of the league, scored twice Edu (Who else could it be?) and Gonzalez what a shock, put Betis up 2-1 prior to halftime. Drenthe scored in the 6th minute when Robben blew by Melli and Juanito and gave a great pass on the goal.

The second half was more equal in play as both teams used all their subs. Van Nistelroy hit a shot off the crossbar and Madrid had a chance in the 95th minute with a DK just outside the box.

At the end Betis keeps the 3 points and Madrid loses for the fouth time this season, with all four losses coming on Saturday evening matches.

Viva Er Beti Manque Lopera!

Er Pichi