Villarreal's problems exposed as ruthless Real Betis pile pressure on Iñigo Pérez

A hugely positive start saw Georges Mikautadze miss a big chance before two Villarreal goals were disallowed for offside.

The early dominance paid off as Gerard Moreno scored after a clever set-piece routine, but this would not last long.

In the blink of an eye, Cucho Hernandez and Natan scored to turn the game around for Betis, against the run of play, leaving Villarreal scratching their heads at half-time.

The second half was disastrous for the home side, and LaLiga debutant goalkeeper Peter Gulacsi prevented the scoreline from being even more embarrassing.

Villarreal hardly created a huge opportunity, and conceded several big chances on the counter-attack as their frailties were exposed.

It was a must-win game for Inigo Perez and Villarreal, and the defeat highlighted the size of task the manager has ahead to reduce some of the mounting pressure on him.

Villarreal were often accused of being too defensive under Marcelino, but that criticism may now feel like a compliment.

Under Perez, Villarreal have shipped 13 goals in six games. Many of those can be pinpointed to under-fire goalkeeper Luiz Junior, but five have come against the superior Peter Gulacsi.

The defeat to Betis highlighted the issue in a bad way. Santiago Mourino was torn to shreds at right-back, with Ez Abde enjoying himself down that side. The first Betis goal came directly from the Uruguayan being turned inside and out by the winger.

Gulacsi did not cover himself in glory for Natan's winner, which came from a set-piece, but aside from the goalkeeper, the defenders were nowhere to be seen, both in marking the Brazilian, as well as trying to be first to the rebound.

The biggest tactical change from Perez to Marcelino has been the intent to dominate possession and press high. This means that Villarreal's defensive line is much higher, but with the same defenders who used to implement a low or mid block.

The second half saw Betis counter on several occasions, with Gulacsi pulling off some strong saves against Nelson Deossa and Hector Bellerin. Both Pau Navarro and Renato Veiga had poor nights, but the latter was particularly underwhelming with his lack of urgency in covering the space behind him.

Perez now faces a dilemma: does he adapt his system, drop his defensive line, and hope his back four make less errors going forward, or does he find a different balance by changing the personnel? Either way, he needs to find this solution quickly.

Villarreal's attack looks deadly on paper, but this season it has been anything but. Big chances go to waste too often, and Gerard Moreno aside, none of the attackers have managed to pull off game-changing moments in recent weeks.

Georges Mikautadze, who was a revelation last season, is looking a shadow of his best self. He somehow could not convert from a few yards out early on, and has just one goal to his name this season: a penalty against Atletico Madrid.

Finding balance in the front two was a struggle which Marcelino also faced last season. Ayoze Perez hardly made an impact when he came on. Tani Oluwaseyi was a surprising positive against Betis, but his lack of consistency or strong finishing means he is not a serious option upfront.

If Villarreal are to start picking up points, they will need Mikautadze to regain his confidence quickly.

Villarreal clearly have quality in their squad, as Marcelino proved last season. Whether Perez can get the players firing to start climbing the table, is a question he can only answer with results.

Pressure is growing on the manager. Not all of the problems can be pinpointed to him, but he is the only person capable of fixing them. Even if he is not culpable, it is his job on the line.