SEVILLE: Betis edged closer to a place in the Conference League final – probably against Chelsea – with a spirited 2–1 win over Fiorentina in a lively semi-final first leg, sparked by goals from Abdessamad Ezzalzouli and Antony.

Betis went ahead after six minutes as Cedric Bakambu teed up Ezzalzouli from the byline, who blasted a shot off the underside of the bar and ran away celebrating before seeing the ball bouncing down and back up and out of the area.

Referee Michael Oliver initially waved play on, but a brief VAR check confirmed the ball had crossed the line and the goal stood.

Fiorentina’s first real chance came after 20 minutes when Rolando Mandragora floated a cross just wide from inside the box, visibly frustrated with the miss.

In the moments before halftime, Marc Bartra had a golden chance to double Betis’ lead when a corner kick dropped at his feet, but he fired over the bar.

Just after the break, goalkeeper David de Gea saved Fiorentina with a superb one-handed reaction stop from a Bartra header, keeping Betis from doubling their advantage.

However, the visitors were helpless in the 64th minute as Antony pounced on a blocked rebound and fired a half-volley from outside the box into the far corner to double Betis’ lead.

Chasing a third straight Conference League final, Fiorentina hit back on 73 minutes when Luca Ranieri slammed home a pull-back in the box to reduce the deficit.

Fiorentina will host Betis in the second leg next Thursday for a right to play in the final in the Polish city of Wroclaw on May 28th against either Djurgarden or Chelsea, with the English side having a 4-1 advantage before the return clash in London on goals from Jadon Sancho, Noni Madueke and Nicholas Jackson (two).

Sancho opened the scoring in the 12th minute, taking possession just outside the six-yard box before cutting inside to shoot, and defender Marcus Danielsson’s attempt to clear only helped the ball into the back of the net, briefly silencing the passionate home crowd.

Madueke doubled their lead before the break with a controlled first-time finish, stroking home a pass from Enzo Fernandez, with the home side’s Tokmac Nguen going close in first-half stoppage time with a rare effort on target for Djurgarden.

With the game under control and one eye on Sunday’s Premier League game against Liverpool, Enzo Maresca made four changes at the break, and substitute Jackson made the most of a defensive mix-up to score in the 59th minute.

Another defensive error led to Jackson’s second goal a few minutes later, but the home side were given a sliver of hope when Isak Alemayehu Mulugeta scored with a downward header that bounced up into the top corner in the 68th minute.

The home side almost reduced the deficit further in the 79th minute, but Adam Stahl skied the ball over the bar with the goal at his mercy to leave Chelsea firmly in control of the tie ahead of next week’s second leg in London, with the final set to take place in Wroclaw, Poland on May 28.

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