Lainez watches from the bench, Guardado plays as Betis exits Copa del Rey!

Andres Guardado played 79 minutes, and Diego Lainez watched from the bench as Real Betis was unable to come back from being down 1-0 and gets eliminated from the Spanish Copa del Rey. Coming into the game, Betis knew they would have their hands full as Valencia needed to win by a minimal margin in the second leg of the semifinals to clinch a spot in the final versus Barcelona.

Betis showed more urgency and had several close opportunities to score in the first half. However, the team with green and white was unable to capitalize any of their chances, and the game went to the lockers tied 0-0.

In the second half, Betis came out firing on all cylinders, but once again were unable to get on the scoreboard. In the 56th minute, Valencia dealt Betis a devastating blow when Rodrigo found himself in front of the goal only to tap the ball into the back of the net after a beautiful cross from Kevin Gameiro. Betis couldn’t recover from the goal, and despite creating more opportunities, Valencia was able to hold on and secure a spot in the Copa del Rey final. It’s tough to tell why Betis head coach Quique Setien didn’t bring Lainez into the game to help create offensive opportunities. In any case, with Europa League and now this tournament behind them, the team from Seville will shift their full attention to La Liga where they’re currently in 7th place fighting for European qualification.