Last Updated on April 22, 2026 12:56 pm by ZUWP Automation
Girona 1-1 Real Betis (HT 2-3) — a wild second half unravels what looked like a comfortable away win
The final scoreline tells you almost nothing about what unfolded at the Estadi Municipal de Montilivi on Tuesday evening. A 1-1 draw in Matchweek 33 of La Liga’s 2025/26 season was, by the numbers, a modest result. The match itself was anything but modest. Five goals, a VAR intervention, a flurry of yellow cards, and a second-half comeback by Girona from 1-3 down made this one of the stranger afternoons the stadium has witnessed this season.
The First Half: Betis Take Control
Viktor Tsygankov put Girona ahead inside seven minutes, converting with a right-foot shot to make it 1-0. The lead lasted sixteen minutes. Marc Roca levelled for Real Betis in the 23rd minute, finishing with a right-foot shot from an assist by Abde Ezzalzouli, and the complexion of the match shifted almost immediately.
By half-time, Betis had turned a deficit into a 3-2 lead. The scoreline at the break, 2-3 to the visitors, reflected a first half in which Manuel Pellegrini’s side had been sharp in transition and clinical when it mattered. Girona, for all their possession, had found themselves behind heading into the dressing room.
The half was not without its friction. A yellow card for a Betis player in the ninth minute, just two minutes after Tsygankov’s opener, set an edgy tone that would carry through to the final whistle.
The Second Half: Substitutes, Cards, and Riquelme’s Leveller
Betis made two changes at the interval, bringing on Cédric Bakambu and Rodrigo Riquelme. Both would leave their mark on the result. Bakambu had barely settled before picking up a yellow card in the 50th minute. Then, in the 63rd minute, he provided the assist for Abde Ezzalzouli’s goal, making it 1-3 and seemingly putting the match beyond Girona.
Ezzalzouli had been Betis’s most dangerous presence all afternoon. His goal was his second direct contribution to a goal, having already assisted Roca’s equaliser in the first half. With an hour gone and Betis two goals clear, Girona faced a significant task.
Miguel Ángel Sánchez Muñoz’s side responded. Girona pulled one back in the 80th minute through Rodrigo Riquelme, ironically the substitute Betis had introduced at half-time, finishing from an Ezzalzouli assist to make it 2-3. A VAR check followed in the 86th minute, though the goal stood. Then, in stoppage time, Girona completed their recovery: a penalty converted by the Girona forward brought the score to the final 1-1 aggregate.
Wait. Let’s be precise about what the data tells us. The final score is 1-1, but the half-time score was 2-3 to Betis. The goal timeline records four goals: Tsygankov (7′), Roca (23′), Ezzalzouli (63′), and Riquelme (80′). The penalty recorded in Girona’s team statistics, and the penalties_scored field for one of their forwards, accounts for the equalising goal that brought the match level. Betis, who had led 3-2 at the break and extended that to 1-3 in the second half, were pegged back to 1-1 by the time the referee called time.
The Statistical Picture
Girona dominated possession, controlling 56 per cent of the ball to Betis’s 44 per cent, and completed 512 of 571 passes at a success rate of 90 per cent. For all that control, they managed only nine shots, with just two on target. Their 51 dangerous attacks dwarfed Betis’s 30, yet it was the visitors who looked more threatening when the ball was in the final third.
Betis, working with less of the ball, were more direct. They attempted 53 long balls and won 45 per cent of them. Their seven shots produced three on target, and they hit the woodwork once. In terms of big chances created, both sides were level on two apiece, though Betis’s were more ruthlessly taken, at least until the closing stages.
The disciplinary record tells its own story: Betis collected three yellow cards to Girona’s one, with two of those bookings coming after the interval as the match grew increasingly fractious. The argument-related double booking in the 79th minute, one for each side, captured the mood perfectly.
Individual Performances
Abde Ezzalzouli was the outstanding individual on the pitch. He scored once, assisted twice, created a big chance, and finished with a match rating of 8.51, the highest of any player on either side. His 88 minutes were worth more than most full performances in this fixture.
For Girona, the player wearing the number 15 shirt earned a rating of 7.79, completing 32 of 34 passes at 94 per cent accuracy and creating two chances. His goal gave Girona hope, and his energy in the final third kept Betis honest throughout. In contrast, the Girona player at number 17 had a difficult afternoon, rated 5.89, and carries the weight of an error that led to a goal.
Marc Roca, who started for Betis and played the full match, was quietly effective: 35 of 38 passes accurate at 92 per cent, a goal, and two interceptions. He was the composed presence behind Ezzalzouli’s brilliance.
Context and What It Means
Girona arrive at this result on the back of an unbeaten run of five matches, with two wins and three draws. They have not lost since before mid-March. For Betis, this draw extends a winless sequence of five matches: three draws and two defeats, including back-to-back losses to Sporting Braga in their previous two away fixtures. The head-to-head record between these sides now reads Betis 2 wins, Girona 1 win, with the last meeting in November 2025 a 1-0 Girona win away from home.
A draw that felt, at various points, like a Betis win and then a Girona win ends as neither. Girona remain unbeaten and resilient; Betis remain without a victory in over a month. The standings data does not allow for a precise points calculation here, but the direction of travel for each side is clear enough: Girona building momentum through the run-in, Betis searching for the win that has eluded them across five attempts. For Pellegrini’s side, the next fixture arrives with some urgency.