Spanish press reacts to Rangers win v Real Betis in Europa League
Rangers were hailed by the Spanish press after defeating LaLiga side Real Betis 1-0 at Ibrox in their opening Europa League group game.
The 2021-22 finalists came out on top in Thursday’s contest [21 September] thanks to Abdallah Sima’s goal with 67 minutes on the clock.
Gers goalkeeper Jack Butland produced some good saves, but Tom Lawrence and Borna Barisic also went close by striking the frame of the goal.
Reviewing the game for AS [21 September], Daniel Lagos described Betis as “ineffective” against a “direct” and “intense” Rangers side.
Lagos added that it was “madness” at Ibrox after Sima had opened the scoring with his poked finish following a frantic scramble in the box.
In an El Mundo match review titled “Betis fell asleep in Glasgow” [21 September], it was argued the visitors “controlled” the contest.
However, Rangers were given their dues for profiting from their opponent’s “lethargy” by coming away with all three points.
That was an opinion shared by Mundo Deportivo [21 September], with Jordi Santamaria commenting that Rangers rode through a spell of Betis “dominance” and were then “clearly superior” once they imposed “their physical power and speed”.
It made for a night to forget for Betis, whereas Rangers now finally have a bit of momentum on their side ahead of their weekend league clash with Motherwell.
In other Rangers news, Ally McCoist was left stunned by something he saw in the Gers’ win over Betis.