La Liga 2023-24: Manuel Pellegrini extends Real Betis stay until 2026

Madrid (Spain), July 7 After a hugely-successful 2022-23 season, Real Betis coach Manuel Pellegrini has signed a contract extension which ties him to the Seville side for three more years through to June 2026.

The Chilean has enjoyed a hugely successful first three years at the helm at the Benito Villamarin, leading the club to the 2022 Copa del Rey -– their first major trophy since 2005 –- and to three consecutive European qualifications, an unprecedented achievement in the history of the club, with sixth (2021), fifth (2022) and sixth (2023)-place finishes.

Pellegrini also ranks third on the all-time list of coaches with the most matches coached for the club in La Liga and has the second-most wins in club history.

Having ushered in an era in which the club is consistently challenging at the top of the La Liga table, Pellegrini’s long-term objective is to bring Champions League football to the Benito Villamarin, something he has a track record of doing throughout his career.

He led Villarreal to Europe’s top international club competition for the first time in their history in only his first season at the club, reaching the semifinals in 2005/06 and quarterfinals in 2008/09.

After leading Real Madrid to a then-club record 96-point season in 2010, Pellegrini worked his magic yet again for Málaga, achieving the club’s best-ever finish in the league and taking them to the Champions League quarterfinals in 2013.

And now, having put together one of the most consistently entertaining and attacking sides in La Liga boasting the likes of creative talent Nabil Fekir and Spain international goalscorer Borja Iglesias, one would not dare to bet against Pellegrini doing the same with Real Betis in the coming years.

Real Betis will start their new campaign in La Liga 2023-24 by hosting Villarreal, one of Pellegrini's former clubs, on August 14.

This will be their ninth consecutive season in the top flight of Spanish football and 116th season in the history of Real Betis.

--IANS

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