Real Madrid's Frustrating Night Against Betis: A Tale of Missed Opportunities

Real Madrid discovered their first real crack of the season where it hurts most: in front of goal.

They created enough chances to win two games. Maybe three. They hit the woodwork three times, missed a penalty in the 94th minute and ran into a goalkeeper, Valles, who turned La Cartuja into his own personal stage. By the end, José Mourinho’s forwards looked beaten not by Betis, but by the man in gloves.

At the centre of it all stood Kylian Mbappé, the face of Madrid’s exasperation. He saw Valles deny him in almost every possible way. One-on-ones, shots across goal, efforts from close range. The night ended with the most painful of all: a penalty in stoppage time, struck with the weight of the match on his shoulders and pushed away by the Betis keeper.

For a moment, it seemed Mbappé might get a reprieve. There was a hint of a retake, a pause, a collective intake of breath. But Hernández Hernández stuck with his decision. No second chance. No lifeline. The frustration in white shirts deepened.

Mbappé had already piled up a catalogue of near-misses. In the first half alone he enjoyed a double opportunity that usually ends with the net bulging. Not this time. Valles and his defence threw themselves in the way, blocks and saves arriving at the last possible instant. Each one added to the sense that this was a night when Madrid could play on until dawn and still not score.

Valles did not limit his heroics to the Frenchman. Jude Bellingham and Espí both rose to meet crosses with strong, well-directed headers. Both times, the keeper read the flight, adjusted his feet and clawed the ball away. For him, it was one of those nights goalkeepers dream about. It may well go down as the best of his career.

Madrid did, briefly, think they had finally broken him. Near the 90th minute, the Valencia forward found a way past the home goalkeeper, the ball in the net and the away end erupting. The joy lasted only seconds. The flag went up, the replay confirmed an earlier offside, and the goal disappeared from the scoreboard. Along with the late penalty decision, it promises to keep the debate raging long after the final whistle.

Bellingham, usually the heartbeat of this Madrid side, never quite found his rhythm. From the opening minutes he looked drained, the oppressive heat of La Cartuja clinging to him like an extra marker. He kept running, kept offering himself, but the sharp bursts, the sudden drives into the box that have defined his start to the season were largely absent. Even so, he still came within inches of scoring, denied only by Valles again and the unforgiving crossbar.

On the left, Vini endured a bruising evening of his own. Time and again he ran at Bellerín. Time and again the Betis full-back stood his ground and came out on top, winning duels that Vini usually turns into highlights. The Brazilian refused to disappear, kept demanding the ball, kept attacking. His persistence eventually forced the penalty that should have rescued a point for Los Blancos. Earlier, he too had rattled the woodwork after one of Madrid’s best moves of the first half.

Madrid leave La Cartuja with questions about their cutting edge, a catalogue of chances, and nothing to show for it. The season is young, but on nights like this, wastefulness starts to feel like a warning.