DERMOT CORRIGAN: Betis back from the brink

“We were too emotional in the first game, and we were overwhelmed,” said Real Betis coach Pepe Mel ahead of Friday’s clash with Sevilla, where his side were looking to avenge their 5-1 hammering in November’s previous city derby.

He took his side out of the city to prepare away from all the hype, tried to play down the significance of the game all week, and then saw his charges fall 3-0 behind inside 30 minutes.

Sevilla’s Croatian midfielder Ivan Rakitic took advantage of goalkeeping and refereeing errors for the first two. Alvaro Negredo converted a superb Jose Reyes pass to make it three.