Abde Ezzalzouli emerged as Real Betis’ hero on Thursday after he netted an extra-time winner to make them the first Spanish side to reach the Conference League final with a 4-3 aggregate victory over Fiorentina, setting up a showdown with Premier League side Chelsea.
While Betis were celebrating reaching their first European final after the second leg ended in a 2-2 draw — which included a goal and an assist from Manchester United loanee Antony — Fiorentina were left to digest further disappointment in the competition as they bowed out in the semifinals following back-to-back final defeats.
Betis manager Manuel Pellegrini was thrilled about reaching the final, but stressed that securing a Champions League spot in LaLiga remains his top priority.
“My satisfaction is logical. It makes me much happier to see the joy of the Betis fans. We felt a little bit indebted, with the need to give the Betis fans this kind of joy,” Pellegrini told reporters.
However, Pellegrini added that, in addition to the final, ending the Laliga campaign on a high note is the first priority as his side are sixth with 57 points, a single point behind Villarreal.
“From tomorrow we leave the Conference League out because we have four very important league games left to aim for the Champions League until the end of the season,” Pellegrini said. “We are very happy to reach the final, and even more so with Chelsea and I sent [manager Enzo] Maresca a message a long time ago being very happy for him.”
The top four teams in LaLiga receive an automatic berth to the Champions League, while the Conference League winner is guaranteed a spot in next season’s Europa League.
The Italian hosts faced an uphill task of overturning a first-leg deficit after Betis won 2-1 in Seville last week and struggled to make any impact during the early exchanges.
Betis increased their advantage when Antony scored on the half-hour mark with a stunning free kick, curling the ball over the wall and in off the post.
However, just four minutes later, Fiorentina hit back as an unmarked Robin Gosens rose to meet a corner, calmly steering a header into the far corner to the delight of the cheering home fans.
Three minutes before the break, Gosens struck again as he rose above Betis defender Marc Bartra and powered a header into the near top corner from yet another corner, completing a dramatic first-half turnaround for Fiorentina.
The action did not let up and just before the break Betis’ Johnny Cardoso unleashed a rocket from the edge of the box that thundered off the crossbar and flew over, leaving the crowd gasping.
Antony nearly snatched a late equaliser for Betis minutes before full time, pouncing on a loose pass to race through one-on-one with David De Gea, who pulled off a stunning double save.
It took seven minutes of extra time before Antony managed to send a cross past De Gea and into the path of an onrushing Ezzalzouli, who easily scored from close range.
Betis will now play the final in Krakow, Poland, on May 28 against a Chelsea side that easily dispatched Swedish club Djurgarden with a 5-1 aggregate win.
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