Pablo Fornals ‘confident’ that ‘Spanish West Ham’ can beat Chelsea in Europa Conference League final
Pablo Fornals believes Real Betis can upset Chelsea in the Europa Conference League Final and says the La Liga outfit shares a surprising amount in common with his former club, West Ham.
Speaking ahead of Wednesday night’s showpiece in Wroclaw, the midfielder drew parallels between the Hammers and Chelsea and backed Betis to compete with their heavily favoured Premier League opponents.
“Yeah [there are similarities], I used to say to my ex-teammates at West Ham that Betis could be the Spanish West Ham,” he said.
“Well, it is quite similar for an English guy to understand [how big a club Betis are], anywhere in the world that you are, you have Betis badges, and you have people who support us.
“It is the same. I remember being in Thailand with my wife on our honeymoon, and there were lots of West Ham fans over there; anywhere in the world, you can find West Ham fans.
“Betis are the same.”
Fornals joined Betis last January after four years at West Ham, where he won this very competition with West Ham in 2023. He now stands on the brink of lifting it again, this time under the guidance of a familiar face.
Betis boss Manuel Pellegrini also managed Fornals during his time at West Ham and has already left a significant mark in Seville.
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Since taking over in 2020, the Chilean has led the club to a Copa del Rey title and four consecutive seasons in Europe.
Fornals believes his current coach may well be the most successful in Betis’ history.
“If I am not wrong, since they have been here at Betis, they have qualified for European football in all of the seasons,” he said.
“They have won the Copa del Rey, so I do not think it is luck.
“It is massive for this club, I don’t think there is any coach in Betis history that has done better than him.”
Chelsea, who topped the Conference League group stage with a perfect record, head into the final as favourites. Maresca’s side secured a top-four Premier League finish on the final day and are looking to complete the full set of UEFA trophies.
But Fornals insisted Betis can’t be written off.
“Of course [Betis can compete with Chelsea], I don’t think there can be a favourite in a final because it is just one game,” he added.
“I think we did pretty well in La Liga, competing with the best teams in the league for just one game.
“So, I am quite confident about this game.”
