Abde Ezzalzouli Left Out of Betis Champions League Squad

Abde Ezzalzouli’s European season has stalled before it even started.

The Morocco international has been left out of Real Betis’s squad to face Lille in the UEFA Champions League, with Manuel Pellegrini opting against including the winger for Tuesday night’s league-phase opener in France.

Pellegrini announced his travelling group on Sunday. Ezzalzouli’s name was missing. Instead, the list leaned on the side’s headline talent: Isco, Giovani Lo Celso, Antony and Dani Ceballos are all in, underlining the strength of the attacking options ahead of the club’s return to Europe’s elite competition.

For Ezzalzouli, the timing could hardly be worse.

He had already sat out Betis’s last La Liga outing against Real Madrid, ruled out by a viral infection. That absence came just as he seemed to be turning a corner physically, having recently shaken off earlier problems to get back on the pitch.

The winger managed a brief appearance against Levante in the previous round, a small but important step in his recovery. Then the illness hit and undid that momentum, costing him a place in the squad once again — this time on the European stage he has been desperate to reach.

Now he faces another chase.

With Betis stepping into a demanding run of fixtures at home and in Europe, Ezzalzouli’s immediate challenge is clear: recover fully, regain sharpness, and convince Pellegrini he belongs back in the rotation as the Champions League campaign gathers pace.