Abde Ezzalzouli Left Out of Champions League Squad by Pellegrini

Abde Ezzalzouli’s start to the European season has stalled before it even began.

The Morocco international has been left out of Real Betis’s squad for their UEFA Champions League clash with Lille, a fresh blow just as he thought he was turning the corner physically.

On Sunday, Manuel Pellegrini named his list for Tuesday night’s trip to France, the opening game of the new league phase of the Champions League. Ezzalzouli’s name was missing. The headline acts were all there instead: Isco, Giovani Lo Celso, Antony, Dani Ceballos. The core of Betis’s creative and attacking talent, but no Abde.

For the winger, 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 right after he had only just reappeared on the scene, having shaken off earlier physical problems to get a few minutes under his belt against Levante in the previous round.

Just when he thought he was edging back, the door closed again.

The latest illness has once more cost him a place in Pellegrini’s matchday plans, this time on the European stage he had been gearing up for. Betis are stepping into a demanding period, juggling domestic duties with the intensity of Champions League football, and squad roles are hardening as the season’s rhythm takes shape.

For Ezzalzouli, the challenge is now brutally clear. He must recover quickly, rebuild his fitness, and convince Pellegrini he belongs back in that travelling party. With Betis entering the heart of their European campaign, he has little time to waste if he wants to turn from absentee to asset.