Jagoba Arrasate Reflects on Betis Defeat and Team’s Challenges

omidbasir- Jagoba Arrasate recognized that Real Betis, known for their devastating transitions, poses a significant threat to any opponent. He had cautioned his players throughout the week about this, yet the strategy devised for their match at Son Moix proved ineffective, resulting in a 1-2 defeat that pushed the team into the relegation zone, as he discussed with DAZN.

Regarding the match, Arrasate commented on Betis’s vertical style of play: “Last week, they altered their approach to defend more compactly, which they replicated today. Their transitions are particularly strong. At times, we allowed them to capitalize on our mistakes, and going down 0-2 made it a challenging situation. The team did make an effort, and until the end, we believed we had a chance with the support of the crowd, but it’s difficult against such a strong side.”

He noted that they had been forewarned: “It’s true that they were performing well in the league, and after last week’s adjustments that worked for them, they repeated a similar strategy today. While controlling possession and creating numerical advantages is challenging, we managed to do so. However, we must achieve better balance to halt their transitions. Their first goal was a result of this. The second goal occurred as well, and I can understand that in the second half, we became more aggressive, leaving spaces for them to exploit.”

On the potential penalty awarded to Muriqi, he expressed: “These incidents occur in live matches. I felt that the foul on Mateo Joseph before Betis’s second goal should have been called. However, we must improve our defensive play. Muriqi’s situation surprised me. I don’t consider those types of incidents adequate for a penalty call, but his yellow card, especially in light of what we’ve seen throughout the league, was unexpected.”

Reflecting on the relegation battle, he remarked: “I believe the key factor will be our footballing performance, but more importantly, our emotional resilience. Today, Rayo Vallecano started in the relegation zone and managed to win, bringing them joy. They even pushed Valencia into the drop zone, and they won as well. Now, we are the ones facing challenges, but we must persist. There are enough matches left, and this situation will continue until the end. We need to focus on maintaining our emotional balance, not letting a defeat deter us, nor should we assume that a single victory will alleviate all our troubles.”

Finally, he reflected on the match’s significance: “Every match is an opportunity, especially given our current standing. We’ve faced five fixtures in the second half of the season against three Champions League teams and another competing in the Europa League. While this isn’t an excuse, it does play a role. We need to keep working hard and accumulate points.”