ALBACETE, Spain: Second-tier Albacete produced one of the biggest shocks of the Copa del Rey season, stunning Real Madrid 3-2 on Wednesday to knock the Spanish giants out at the round-of-16 stage on Álvaro Arbeloa’s managerial debut.
On a misty night at the Carlos Belmonte Stadium, a raucous crowd of 17,000 created an electric atmosphere as substitute Jefte Betancor emerged as the hero, scoring twice to seal a famous victory.
Real, still reeling from the midweek sacking of Xabi Alonso, fielded a largely second-string side under new coach Arbeloa and struggled to assert control amid dense fog and relentless pressure from the hosts.Albacete struck first in the 42nd minute when Javier Villar headed home José Lazo’s corner, igniting celebrations in the stands.
Despite Real’s late push and a dramatic equaliser in stoppage time through Gonzalo’s towering header to make it 2-2, the visitors were left exposed at the back.Deep into added time, Betancor broke free on the counter, saw his first effort blocked by Dani Carvajal, but calmly gathered the rebound and rifled a stunning right-footed strike into the top corner to complete the upset.
“We’ve hit rock bottom,” admitted Real captain Carvajal after the match. “You have to face up to it when you lose, and that’s what we have to do now.”
