Elche 0–2 Real Betis: Riquelme and Bartra strike in final ten minutes

Real Betis overcame stubborn Elche resistance to win 2–0 at the Martínez Valero, scoring both goals in the final ten minutes. For most of the afternoon, Martin Anselmi's hosts held their defensive positions and kept the visitors out, with goalkeeper Matías Dituro making saves as Betis tried to find the breakthrough. A share of the points seemed achievable for Elche as the match entered its final stretch, but Pellegrini's changes altered the direction of the game.

The decisive moment

Rodrigo Riquelme was introduced in the 78th minute and scored in the 81st, offering the visiting attack the decisive action it had lacked. Suddenly Elche needed to commit players forward to recover a draw, creating space that had been difficult to exploit with the score level. The moment rewarded Betis for maintaining pressure and showed the value of fresh attacking options against an opponent growing tired after a long defensive effort.

How the game finished

Marc Bartra then secured the result in the 89th minute, heading in a Dani Ceballos delivery. It was a set-piece finish rather than an extension of Riquelme's open-play goal, illustrating that Betis found two distinct routes past Elche once the deadlock was broken. The second strike removed the prospect of a meaningful late equaliser and left the home team with no time to rescue the result.

The numbers and the verdict

Betis finished with eighteen attempts against Elche's thirteen, but the shots-on-target count was nine to one in the visitors' favour. An external expected-goals comparison also favoured Betis, approximately 1.95 to 1.25. Elche had stayed competitive for eighty minutes without making the visiting goalkeeper work often enough. Betis converted the clearer late opportunities and left with a victory that strengthens their position among the league's European contenders.