Late Riquelme and Bartra Goals Give Real Betis 2-0 Win at Elche

Real Betis scored twice in the last nine minutes to beat Elche 2-0 at the Estadio Martinez Valero on Sunday, a result that cemented their place in the La Liga top four and left the home side still searching for a first home win of the season.

The Matchday 12 fixture was goalless at half time and stayed level deep into the second half. Elche, managed by Martin Anselmi, held the visitors for 81 minutes, but the breakthrough went to Betis, and once it came, a second goal followed quickly to settle the match.

The breakthrough

Rodrigo Riquelme opened the scoring in the 81st minute. Substitute Dani Ceballos delivered the cross, Jose Morante headed the ball against the post, and Elche failed to clear the danger. Riquelme reacted first and fired the ball past goalkeeper Matias Dituro to give Betis the lead with nine minutes left.

Bartra seals it

Eight minutes later, in the 89th minute, Marc Bartra made the result safe. The defender headed home from a corner to make it 2-0, scoring for the second successive La Liga match. The two late goals turned a tight away performance into a comfortable final score, and the away side saw out the closing minutes without further alarm.

What it means

The win cemented Betis in the top four in La Liga, the places that carry qualification for the Champions League. It also ended a three game winless away run in all competitions for the Seville club, a run that had threatened to drag them back toward the pack chasing the European places.

For Elche, the defeat keeps a difficult home record intact. Anselmi's side are still searching for their first home victory of the campaign, and a match they defended well for more than 80 minutes ended with nothing to show for it. The late collapse will sting: the first goal came from a failure to clear after the ball hit the post, and the second from a set piece, two moments that undid an otherwise organised display.

Flashscore named Isco of Real Betis its Man of the Match. The final score was Elche 0, Real Betis 2, with both goals arriving in the second half after a goalless first 45 minutes at the Estadio Martinez Valero, the home ground where Elche have now gone another match without a win this campaign.