Troy Parrott scored in the 81st minute to put Real Betis ahead 1-0 against Real Madrid in their La Liga match on Friday, capitalising on a rebound after Thibaut Courtois saved a header.
The Irish forward, who had entered as a substitute, reacted quickest to the loose ball at La Cartuja Stadium to give the home side a slender advantage late in the second half of the Matchday 4 encounter.
Real Madrid had dominated possession and created the clearer chances for much of the contest. Goalkeeper Álvaro Valles produced several important saves, including one to deny Jude Bellingham from a corner, while Kylian Mbappé and Vinícius Júnior were both denied in promising positions.
Betis coach Manuel Pellegrini made changes after the hour mark, introducing Parrott and others to inject fresh energy. Madrid manager José Mourinho also turned to his bench, bringing on Trent Alexander-Arnold, Bernardo Silva and Yan Diomandé.
Before the match, Mourinho had stressed the difficulty of the fixture. “Real Madrid has to play at its best; otherwise, it won’t win. Betis is a very good team, and Real Madrid’s recent results there speak for themselves. It’s hard to win there, and to win, you have to be at your absolute best—there’s no other way,” the Portuguese coach said.
Pellegrini acknowledged the challenge posed by the visitors. “It’ll be tough. Madrid has added quite a few players to its roster and is playing well right now and we’ll have to play a very well-rounded game,” the Chilean manager stated.
The match remained scoreless at half-time despite Madrid’s 15 shots to Betis’s five. Cooling breaks were taken in both halves amid high temperatures.
