Real Betis has returned to the Champions League with a perfect record after more than 20 years.
No team outside Real Madrid, Barcelona, or Atlético Madrid achieved this feat in more than a decade. On that previous occasion, it was Manuel Pellegrini who managed the project that Betis has now equalized over the past few hours.
Real Betis is experiencing the best period in its modern history. During Manuel Pellegrini's seven years in charge, the club has won trophies such as the Copa del Rey and established itself as a regular participant in European competitions. The recent victory over Porto confirms that, for the first time in 14 years, a LaLiga team other than Barcelona, Real Madrid, or Atlético Madrid has won its first two Champions League matches.
The Andalusian side defeated Porto 3-2 at home after winning away against French club Lille on the opening matchday. It has been a dominant start to the campaign, which has also extended the team's unbeaten run to seven matches. Pellegrini's men have not lost since August 29, when they suffered a 5-2 defeat against Levante. Their improvement since then has allowed them to equalize a record that had not been matched in Spain for 14 years.
We have to go back 14 years to find a team other than Real Madrid, Barcelona, or Atlético Madrid that won its first two Champions League matches while representing Spain. On that occasion, Málaga achieved the feat under Manuel Pellegrini, who was in charge of that ambitious project. At the time, the club was receiving substantial investment from the Middle East and had amazing players such as Isco, Santi Cazorla, Ruud van Nistelrooy, and Julio Baptista.
It all happened during the 2012-13 Champions League group stage. In the first two rounds, Málaga defeated both Zenit and Anderlecht. That season, the Andalusian club made history by reaching the quarterfinals, where it was eliminated only by Jürgen Klopp's legendary Borussia Dortmund side. Fourteen years later, Manuel Pellegrini is once again demonstrating why he is considered one of the most important coaches of the 21st century in LaLiga.
It was particularly important for Betis to beat the Portuguese side in their most recent match. In the next round of the Champions League, they will face Dutch club Feyenoord. After that, they will take on Borussia Dortmund and then Slovan Bratislava before ending the year with a major home match against Como. The six points they have already collected have everyone dreaming of reaching the next stage of Europe's premier club competition.
Nothing like this has been seen since 2012 among Spanish teams outside Barcelona, Real Madrid, and Atlético Madrid. Once again, Manuel Pellegrini, who has quietly delivered results in Seville over the past seven years, features in this historic statistic. Real Betis continues to establish itself as a serious contender to become the fourth major force in Spanish football.
