Karetsas restores Dortmund lead as Betis are beaten 2-1
Fábio Silva and Konstantinos Karetsas scored either side of Aitor Ruibal's equaliser as Dortmund beat Betis on Champions League Matchday 4.
By Harvey Watkins,
Dortmund beat Betis 2-1 at the Westfalenstadion on Wednesday night. Konstantinos Karetsas scored the winner in the 72nd minute, five minutes after Aitor Ruibal had drawn the visitors level. Fábio Silva had opened the scoring shortly after half-time.
A goalless first half, then Silva
Nothing separated the sides at the interval. It took Dortmund only four minutes of the second half to change that, with Fábio Silva scoring in the 49th minute to give the home side the lead.
A one-goal advantage early in the second half is a useful position without being a comfortable one. Dortmund held it for 18 minutes before Betis found a way back.
Ruibal's equaliser and a quick reply
Aitor Ruibal levelled in the 67th minute. For an away side that had trailed for most of the half, an equaliser with a little over 20 minutes remaining put Betis in a strong position. A draw on the road is rarely a poor return in this competition, and at that point it was there for them to protect.
The equaliser lasted five minutes. Karetsas restored Dortmund's lead in the 72nd minute, and the speed of that response is the detail that defines the match. Dortmund did not have to spend the closing stages chasing a goal. Instead, the onus moved back to Betis, who had the final 18 minutes plus stoppage time to find a second equaliser and could not.
What the result shows
All three goals came in a 23-minute spell in the second half, which made for a match that turned twice in quick succession after a first half that settled nothing. A single-goal margin does not say a great deal about the relative quality of the two sides, and it would be a stretch to read this as a decisive verdict on either.
What the scoreline does show is that Dortmund answered the setback almost immediately. A home lead that slips with 20 minutes left can easily become a draw. Restoring it within five minutes kept the result in their hands.
For Betis, there is something to take from coming back once away from home. They were briefly on course for a point and lost it quickly, which is the kind of narrow margin that can go either way on another night.
This is one result, and a close one, so it is better read as a single night's work than as a statement about where either side is heading.
Goals
- 49' Fábio Silva (Dortmund) 1-0
- 67' Aitor Ruibal (Betis) 1-1
- 72' Konstantinos Karetsas (Dortmund) 2-1