Braga, April 10 (IANS) Cucho Hernandez’s second-half penalty cancelled out an early Florian Grillitsch opener as Braga and Real Betis settled for a 1-1 draw in the first leg of their UEFA Europa League quarterfinals tie.
The tie is fascinatingly poised ahead of the return in Seville next week after a tight, engaging affair at Estádio Municipal de Braga ended all square.
Braga got off to a lightning start, Diego Rodrigues delivering a low corner and Grillitsch applying a delightful improvised flicked finish at the near post to give his side the early lead.
Betis came close to an equaliser after 24 minutes, centre-back Marc Bartra rising to meet Marc Roca’s curling free-kick with a glancing header that hit the post and bounce away from danger.
Braga goalkeeper Lukáš Horníček then had to be alert ten minutes before half-time to tip away Cucho Hernández’s close-range header as the visitors began to ramp up the pressure in search of a leveller.
Star winger Antony was introduced as a half-time substitute to try to inject some pace and trickery for the visitors, but it was Braga who had the first meaningful effort of the second period, Grillitsch Pau López into a good save from range.
On the hour, though, Betis were handed a lifeline when Jean-Baptiste Gorby fouled Abde Ezzalzouli in the box, Cucho Hernández emphatically dispatching his penalty into the left-hand corner to draw his side level.
The second leg takes place in Seville on April 16. The winners of the tie advance to the semi-finals, where they will meet either Freiburg or Celta; the first leg is at home on April 30 before the return a week later. The final takes place at Istanbul’s Besiktas Park on May 20.
–IANS
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