Radamel Falcao was brilliant again on Wednesday night, but Real Betis' red cards were the story of the night more than his goals. The hosts took a 2-1 lead over Atletico Madrid at halftime, but had a man sent off to begin the second half. They had another man sent off 13 minutes from time, and Atleti went on to win 4-2 thanks to their numbers advantage.
Real Betis Vs. Atletico Madrid, 2012 La Liga: Final Score 4-2 Atleti, Falcao, Red Cards Seal Win
Real Betis were good in the first half against Atletico Madrid, but a red card changed the game in Atleti’s favor.
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Salvador Agra put Betis in front after 25 minutes, applying the very slightest of touches to a cross into the box by Perez Nacho. Three minutes later, Falcao equalized, tapping in a hard and low drive by Raul Garcia that looked like a shot attempt, but curled away from goal and into the outstretched foot of Falcao. Just before the halftime whistle, Betis caught a break when Juanfran deflected the ball into his own net following a corner.
Betis' joy at leading would only last two minutes into the following half. In the 47th minute, Damien Perquis denied Falcao a clear goal-scoring opportunity and was sent off. Falcao converted the penalty to make it 2-2, and the hosts never had any hope of holding on. Diego Costa came on as a sub and put Atleti up in the 55th minute. Joel Campbell was shown a second yellow card for handball in the 77th minute, and Raul Garcia finished off the game late with a stoppage time goal.
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