There were 15,000 Malaguistas at Martiricos for this Sunday evening fixture. On the pitch, Mel introduced several changes compared to the midweek game and due to the absence of N’Diaye due to suspension – five yellow cards. Manolo Reina; Juanfran, Burgos, Escassi, Javi Jiménez; Ramón, Luis Muñoz, Febas; Hervías, Rubén Castro and Cristian made up the Blue and White starting-11.
Málaga went out with conviction in the initial stages against this Galician side in a similar situation in the standings to Málaga. La Rosaleda soon shook with delight thanks to Marbella-born Cristian. The Malaguista winger, who made his debut on Wednesday at the Municipal de Butarque, was part of the starting-11 for the first time and made it 1-0 at the temple in minute 4. Rubén Castro picked up a bad pass from goalkeeper Óscar, enabling the Malaguista number 39 to shoot in front of the area.
The team remained well positioned, moving the ball from one side to the other. Hervías, in minute 15, tried from distance with a direct free kick that crashed into the crossbar. Hernán Pérez's team made an attempt with a volley from captain Manu Barreiro (21'), which went over the goal, and a shot from Chris Ramos ended in a corner kick (37'). At half-time, Pepe Mel's team remained 1-0 up.
The match continued in the same dynamic in the second half. MCF sought to increase their lead, whilst Lugo, with a more direct gameplay, wanted an equaliser.
In minute 56, after a neat exit, Cristian filtered a ball into the heart of the area for Rubén Castro. The Malaguista number 24 controlled and adjusted his shot to make it 2-0 on the scoreboard.
Dani Lorenzo came on in place of Cristian, who received rapturous applause, to boost the control in midfield. However, Pepe Mel's team continued to seek out Óscar's goal. Hervías scored the third after a good combination, but the referee declared it offside.
In the 74th minute, Lugo had a good chance to narrow the gap on the scoreboard, but Javi Jiménez put paid to their attempt. A minute later, 75’, Málaga took advantage of a visiting attack to mount a great counterattack and make it 3-0. Luis Muñoz led, Rubén Castro enabled, and Dani Lorenzo defined with quality and calm.
Fran Villalba and Bustinza came on to bring fresh legs to the team and MCF didn’t let up in the final stages. A few minutes later, Andrés Caro and Fran Sol joined play.
In stoppage time, Lugo scored two goals, the work of Sebas (90’) and Manu Barreiro (94’), with the final result a 3-2 win.
This is Pepe Mel’s first victory at the helm of Málaga CF, who end a negative run of results at La Rosaleda. The Blue and Whites, with nine points in LaLiga SmartBank, continue growing and moving up the table.
