Real Betis coach Manuel Pellegrini returns to Borussia Dortmund on Wednesday with his side carrying a perfect record in the league phase and with one of the most painful nights of his career still tied to the German club. The 73-year-old’s Betis have won all three of their European matches so far, but Dortmund was the setting for Malaga’s agonising Champions League exit in 2013.
Pellegrini’s long coaching career includes major domestic achievements and repeated success in improving clubs, even though the absence of a Champions League title has led some to question his place among the managerial elite. For Betis, the trip is another major moment in a sustained European rise under the Chilean coach, who has led the club since 2020.
A return to the site of Malaga heartbreak
In 2013, Pellegrini’s Malaga were within reach of a Champions League semi-final place before conceding twice in injury time against Jurgen Klopp’s Borussia Dortmund. Felipe Santana scored the winner, which Pellegrini said afterwards appeared to have come from an offside position.
The loss was especially difficult for the coach because he had attended his father’s funeral in Chile before arriving in Germany on the morning of the match. Malaga’s Champions League campaign was the first and only one in the club’s history, and its ending in Dortmund remains a defining disappointment in Pellegrini’s European record.
That summer, Pellegrini took charge of Manchester City. He went on to win the Premier League and two League Cups before leaving in 2016, but a Champions League trophy did not follow. Earlier, he had guided Villarreal to the Champions League semi-finals in 2006, when Arsenal eliminated the Spanish side after Juan Roman Riquelme missed a late penalty in the second leg that could have forced extra time.
Pellegrini also took Villarreal to second place in La Liga in 2008, finishing above Barcelona and Atletico Madrid. That work earned him the Real Madrid job in 2009, where he collected what was then a club-record 96 points before being replaced at the end of the campaign by Jose Mourinho.
Betis build on a perfect European start
Betis arrive in Dortmund after wins over Lille, Porto and Feyenoord to open their European campaign with three victories from three. Their 3-2 win over Lille began that run, and the results have placed Pellegrini’s team in a strong position ahead of another demanding away test.
The club have qualified for European football in each of the past six seasons under Pellegrini. In 2022, he led Betis to the Copa del Rey, taking the club to its first final in 17 years and delivering silverware during his longest spell in charge of a single team.
Last season, Pellegrini guided the Andalusian club back into Champions League qualification after two decades away from the competition. Betis also reached their first European final in 2025, losing to Chelsea in the Conference League. The current campaign gives the coach another opportunity to test his side at the highest level.
Pellegrini has consistently argued that a coach should be judged by more than trophies alone. He has said his objective is to improve on what came before while doing so in his own way. Betis supporters have enjoyed significant progress under his leadership, while his previous work at Villarreal and Malaga also left enduring marks.
Another defining European test
The Dortmund visit therefore brings together Pellegrini’s past and present: the memory of Malaga’s late collapse in 2013 and a Betis side that has started the league phase flawlessly. Betis beat Malaga in La Liga on Saturday, offering a happier reunion with another former club, but Dortmund presents a far more emotional return.
For Pellegrini, the match is not simply a chance to preserve Betis’ perfect European record. It is also a return to the ground where a Champions League semi-final slipped away in injury time, as he continues to add to a career defined by longevity, rebuilding and sustained success across Spanish and English football.
