Betis beat Bournemouth as Defoe shines for 'Cherries'

With Bournemouth also hosting Marseille on the south coast on Saturday, the 'Cherries' fielded an 'alternative' starting XI which included new signing Diego Rico who joined the club from Leganes for £10.7m, alongside Defoe and fellow striker Lys Mousset. 

Real Betis seemingly handled the hot conditions in a more effective manner than Bournemouth, whose general play lacked intensity and this was displayed when the ball fell loose in their penalty area, to be slotted home by Algerian Ryad Boudebouz for the opening goal. 

Defoe in turn showed his agility to win a free-kick for the Premier League side near the penalty area, only for Jordon Ibe to fail to test Joel Robles in the Betis goal. Defoe created a series of other opportunities for Bournemouth but, despite his sharpness in and around the box, was unable to provide the clincial touch he has displayed so often in his career. 

The game looked to be swaying in Bournemouth's direction until Loren Moron added the second goal for the Spanish outfit. 

The scoreline ended 2-0.