Antoine Griezmann Appears To Be On The Verge Of Tears After Missing A Penalty For Barcelona Against Real Betis

Antoine Griezmann appeared to be on the verge of tears after missing a penalty for Barcelona against Real Betis.

With Barca leading 1-0, the Frenchman, who has endured a difficult time since his big-money move from Atletico Madrid in the summer of 2019, saw his spot-kick saved by Claudio Bravo in the 32nd minute.

To rub salt into the wounds, Antonio Sanabria levelled for Betis on the stroke of half-time.

As the teams walked off at the break, Griezmann looked visibly upset.

But he was soon in a better mood, scoring just three minutes after the restart to put the hosts back in front.

Barca eventually ran out 5-2 winners with substitute Lionel Messi scoring his first goal from open play with a rocket of a finish.

It was a much-needed victory for Ronald Koeman, whose side had only picked up two points from the previous four La Liga games.

They move up to eighth, one point behind Manuel Pellegrini's Betis.

Koeman has explained why two-goal Messi started the clash with Betis on the bench.

Following the midweek Champions League win against Dynamo Kyiv, Koeman opted to keep Messi in reserve as his side looked to get their La Liga campaign back on track.

"He had some discomfort since the game against Dynamo Kyiv,"' Koeman told reporters.

"The best thing was to leave him on the bench in case we needed him. Without discomfort, he would have played.

"We know who he is, and I have no doubts about him. I see him working every day.

"He was not fit enough to start today, but his presence in the second half was really important."

Koeman felt his side had deserved victory.

"We had many opportunities and missed the penalty and we only went in 1-1 at half-time," the Dutchman said. "But in the second half we kept the team spirit and could have scored more than five.

"It is an important victory - we needed the three points. In general, the team was good and the victory is deserved."