Real Betis turned the tie around in style as they swept aside Panathinaikos 4-0 in Seville to book their place in the Europa League quarter finals with a 4-1 aggregate victory. UEFA and Reuters both confirmed the result and the scorers, with Betis now set to face Braga in the last eight.
The Spanish side wasted little time in taking control of the second leg. Aitor Ruibal struck early to bring Betis level on aggregate, and Manuel Pellegrini’s team never looked back from there. Panathinaikos struggled to gain any real foothold in the match, with Betis dictating the rhythm and carrying the greater threat throughout.
Betis moved ahead in the tie just before half-time through Sofyan Amrabat, whose goal gave the hosts full momentum going into the interval. Any hopes of a Greek comeback were then effectively ended early in the second half when Cucho Hernandez added a third on the night.
The rout was completed when Antony got on the scoresheet as Betis underlined their superiority with a fourth goal, capping an outstanding team display and ending Panathinaikos’ hopes of a first European quarter final appearance since 2003.
For Betis, it was a statement performance at exactly the right time. After losing the first leg 1-0, they responded with authority, quality and composure to produce one of the most convincing results of the round. The reward is a quarter final clash with Braga, another side that also overturned a first leg deficit to progress.
