Yamal opened the scoring in the 10th minute before Valentín Gómez equalised for Betis. Rodrigo restored Barcelona’s lead before half-time, and Gabriel Jesus made it 3-1 shortly after the restart. Ez Abde then brought Real Betis back into contention, only for Bernal to be dismissed in the 54th minute following an altercation with Yamal. Eric García and Dani Olmo added further goals for the visitors.
Manuel Pellegrini was furious with the decisions he felt had gone against his team, arguing that the scoreline did not reflect the balance of the match.
“The feeling is one of helplessness, without a doubt. Losing this match 5-2 does not reflect what happened. There were a series of incidents involving absolutely incomprehensible and inexplicable refereeing decisions, and a sending-off that left us with ten men in an absurd incident,” the Betis manager said.
Pellegrini also disputed the handball decision involving Cucho Hernández, arguing that the forward had been pushed and that the contact had no bearing on the attack. He questioned an earlier incident in which he believed a Barcelona player had raised a foot dangerously high, and criticised the handling of the confrontation between Bernal and Yamal.
“The sending-off came after provocation and a push from Lamine, which Facundo reacted to. They were both spoken to and shown a yellow card, and that was it,” Pellegrini said, disputing the referee’s decision to dismiss Bernal.
The Chilean nevertheless took pride in his side’s performance before the dismissal. He said Betis had been competitive while the teams had eleven players each, and pointed to Héctor Bellerín’s opportunity to put his side ahead as the game’s balance began to shift.
“We managed to play on equal terms with Barcelona when we had eleven against eleven. That is not easy. It was a very balanced match, and until 3-2 everything was very even against a great team, which is undoubtedly the best in the competition,” he said.
Hansi Flick was more interested in Barcelona’s attacking output and the result ahead of a demanding week featuring Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League and Real Madrid in LaLiga.
“We did some things very well in attack, with intensity. It was not an easy match. We played at a very good level. Betis were very good too, but I think we deserved the victory,” the Barcelona manager said.
Flick also highlighted the importance of the goal scored before half-time and praised the work being done on set pieces. But it was Yamal who received the strongest public endorsement from his coach.
“Lamine’s first goal was incredible. He is the best player in the world right now,” Flick said. “He has a lot of pressure, and he is only 19. He is committed to everything, and that is fantastic.”
Flick said he had told Yamal he was proud of his performance, although he had not seen the incident that led to the red card. He added that the forward had to be substituted after the confrontation.
Barcelona’s ninth win from nine league matches leaves them with momentum before their European and domestic tests. Betis, meanwhile, will be left frustrated by a performance Pellegrini felt was more competitive than the final score suggested.