24 September 2007, by Joao Pedro

Miguel hits net as Valencia beat Betis

Real Betis 1-2 Valencia

Portugal right-back Miguel celebrated his new contract with a rare goal as Valencia eased the pressure on manager Quique Sanchez Flores further with a close-fought win over Betis in Seville.

Los Ches produced a solid away performance to earn their third league win in a row and move into third place in the La Liga table.

Miguel’s goal came at a crucial time, with the match goalless midway through the second half. The former Benfica man went on a typical bursting run from the right and, with the Betis defenders standing off, raced into the area and fired a low shot past countryman Ricardo.

Despite a decent effort from Betis, the visitors made the points safe eight minutes from time as Joaquin stabbed in from close range after meeting Angulo’s cross. As a mark of respect for his hometown club, ex-Betis man Joaquin repeated Ronaldo’s midweek hand gesture and neglected to celebrate in front of his former fans, drawing similarly strong applause from the crowd.

Betis did manage to pull a goal back late on through Rafael Sobis, but with no wins from their first four games, the Andalucians are enduring a tough start to the new campaign, while Ricardo is yet to keep a clean sheet for his new club.

After the match, Valencia boss Flores declared: “We were better. We've gone through a difficult stage recently, and it was also important to win after our match in the Champions League.

“The players did well here. We made four or five changes after Tuesday and those who played here were fine. Above all, we did well here today to get a result in a tough stadium against difficult players.”

Betis:
Ricardo, Vega, Rivas, Juanito, Illic, Miguel (Jose Mari, 74), Somoza, Lopez, Gonzalez (Caffa, 71), Edu (Odonkor, 74), Sobis
Yellow Cards: Illic, Jose Mari

Valencia:
Hildebrand, Miguel, Moretti, Marchena, Albiol, Helguera, Manuel Fernandes, Silva, Joaquin (Sunday, 86), Villa (Morientes, 78), Arizmendi (Angulo, 71)

Goals:
[0-1] Miguel, 68
[0-2] Joaquin, 82
[1-2] Sobis, 86