There were some missed opportunities and Real Betis had the lead at one point, but Real Madrid should be happy with their 3-2 win over Los Verdiblancos.
Earlier this year, Real Madrid lost 2-1 to Real Betis at the Benito Villamarin, so you can say that Madridistas were getting some flashbacks to that loss when midfielder William Carvalho made it 2-1 for the home side after another setup from former Madrid man Sergio Canales.
But in the end, Los Blancos were 3-2 winners, picking up their first win of the season after Matchday 2’s 0-0 draw with Real Sociedad.
Here are the five biggest takeaways from the match.
Raphael Varane is back to his best for Real Madrid
The final taste in Raphael Varane’s mouth from the 2019-2020 season wasn’t a pleasant one, as he had one of the worst games of his career in Real Madrid’s 2-1 loss to Manchester City.
But Varane, as expected, quickly bounced back with a calm performance against Alexander Isak and Real Sociedad.
He was even better against Real Betis at the Benito Villamarin. Varane cut out so many plays inside the box, including one where he read the pass to Sergio Canales and moved in before the ball was played. While Varane didn’t intercept the pass, he got himself into the perfect position to close all of Canales’ options and avert disaster.
There were other examples where he cleaned up some messes that started in midfield, such as when Karim Benzema and Casemiro comically collided with each other, causing the ball to leak into the penalty box.
It’s always good to see Varane in his usual form, as he is one of the top three center backs in world football.