Isco tries to lead Real Betis to its 1st European title in Conference League final vs. Chelsea
Betis' Isco controls the ball during a training session ahead of the Europa Conference League final soccer match between Real Betis and Chelsea in Wroclaw, Poland, Tuesday, May 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Petr Josek)
WROCLAW, Poland (AP) — It's been a breakthrough season for Francisco 'Isco' Alarcon with Real Betis, and it could culminate with him leading the Spanish club to its first European title.
The Betis captain could be the one lifting the historic trophy on Wednesday if his team defeats Chelsea in the Conference League final.
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'Chelsea and ourselves are two good teams with some great players. The game tomorrow is very important for everybody, but I believe what Betis has is a lot of excitement, and the opportunity to win a first final is something historic for us,' Isco said Tuesday.
The Seville club won the Spanish league in 1934-35, as well as three Copas del Rey — most recently in 2022 — but it is yet to triumph at the European level, where it had never gone past the quarterfinals in any competition.
'Believing is the first step to victory,' the 33-year-old playmaker said. 'It is going to be a very difficult game, but we trust our squad. We have proved that we are capable of beating any team, and we are looking forward to this final and bringing joy to our fans, who have deserved it the most.'
Isco's superb season with Betis earned him a spot back in Spain's national team after a long absence. He was called back to Spain's national team by coach Luis de la Fuente on Monday for the Nations League semifinal against France on June 5 in Stuttgart. He hadn't been with Spain's squad since 2019.
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After nearly a decade with Real Madrid, where he won five Champions League titles and three Spanish league titles, Isco returned to his roots in southern Spain, first with Sevilla in 2022-23 and then with Betis, where he has been thriving for the last two seasons.
Betis also has the experience of coach Manuel Pellegrini, who won the Premier League title with Manchester City in 2014 and later was in charge of West Ham at a time when now-Chelsea coach Enzo Maresca was his assistant.
Betis also has a Conference League winner in its squad: midfielder Pablo Fornals, who won the competition with West Ham in 23.
'When you are close to a final," Isco said, "you always visualize what might happen, but you have to focus on the game at hand. This is Betis' first final, and it would be a dream to win it, but it will be very difficult.'
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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
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