Ferrer praises Betis fortitude

By Michael Harrold in Seville

Real Betis Balompié coach Llorenç Serra Ferrer said patience had paid dividends for his side after a thrilling 1-0 victory over AS Monaco FC in their UEFA Champions third qualifying round first-leg tie at the Estadio Manuel Ruíz de Lopera in Seville last night.

Last-gasp winner
Betis had created enough chances in the first half to put the tie beyond doubt, but were made to wait until the final seconds before securing victory. New signing Alberto Rivera's pass split the Monaco defence and Edu, free on the left side of the area, slid a low shot beyond Flavio Roma and into the far corner with the game deep into added time.

Debut victory
Monaco only had time to restart the match before referee Graham Poll blew the final whistle, ensuring Betis ended the first Champions League tie in the club's history on a high. "We had so many chances in the first half, but in football sometimes you have to wait and hope," Ferrer told uefa.com. "Finally we made the most of one of them."

Complete effort
Edu's contribution was all the more remarkable given that his inclusion had been in doubt because of a muscle strain. For Ferrer, the Brazilian midfielder's desire epitomised the character running through his side. "Edu was very tired," he said, "but this was a Champions League game and it was very important for the players that they gave everything."

Oliveira missed
The start of the new Primera División is still a fortnight away and Betis looked rusty as Monaco attacked in the early stages. But once the Seville side had found their stride, Monaco were forced on to the defensive. Betis were without injured leading scorer Ricardo Oliveira and he was badly missed as chance after chance was wasted in the first half.

Clean sheet
But any disappointment Ferrer may have felt at his side's profligacy was more than made up for by the pleasure of seeing them keep a clean sheet. "It is a fair result because we played better than Monaco," he said. "And it's a great result for us because Monaco didn’t score."

'Critical' strike
Monaco coach Didier Deschamps was in agreement. His side had come into the game more in the second half as Betis tired and they looked likely to hold out for a draw before Edu's dramatic late strike. "It is critical to concede a goal like that, especially given that we weren't in any danger," Deschamps said.

Spoilt performance
"It's a good score for them and very negative one for us. This result and that goal at the end erases all our good work because we had been well placed and had found a certain equilibrium. In the first half there were dangerous on a number of times; in the second half we gave them the chance to score."