Looking to bounce back from a heavy 5-1 loss to Real Madrid, Betis threatened to break the deadlock with a couple of golden opportunities before the half-hour mark.
Cucho Hernandez rifled a fierce effort against the near post, shortly before Pablo Fornals was denied by Oviedo goalkeeper Aaron Escandell, who quickly made amends for his poor pass out.
The hosts then went agonisingly close to ending their long wait for a goal in their own stadium when Alberto Reina poked the ball wide after meeting Haissem Hassan’s inswinging delivery at full stretch.
Just moments later, Cucho produced an audacious effort from just inside the Oviedo half, sending the ball soaring over the backpeddling Escandell and onto the top of the crossbar to the relief of the home faithful, who witnessed a ninth consecutive goalless half of football.
Those supporters were then grateful to see Escandell make two important interventions in the opening stages of the second period, standing firm against an Antony effort before making a diving stop to keep Lo Celso at bay.
Manuel Pellegrini’s side were soon made to rue those missed opportunities when Ilyas Chaira let fly from distance, drilling a low strike into the bottom corner to spark scenes of wild jubilation around Estadio Carlos Tartiere with the club’s first home goal since September.
However, the mood turned to one of frustration when Lo Celso produced a glancing header from Antony’s inviting cross to send the ball out of Escandell’s reach, with the goalscorer surviving a VAR review for a potential foul to restore parity.
Despite rescuing a point, sixth-placed Betis would have been underwhelmed with the result against La Liga’s bottom side, who have drawn each of Guillermo Almada’s first three matches in charge and are now five points adrift of safety ahead of the rest of the weekend’s action.
Meanwhile, a run of one win in five league outings means that Betis’ top-six placing is increasingly vulnerable.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Ilyas Chaira (Real Oviedo)
