Málaga CF faced Real Oviedo this Wednesday evening, Three Kings’ Day, in the second round of the Copa de S.M. El Rey, the first match of 2021 to be held at La Rosaleda. This is the first of two matches between these rivals in three days, as they will also play one another in the upcoming LaLiga SmartBank match at the same location (matchday 21, Saturday 9th January at 18:15).
The rain didn’t let up throughout play. However, it didn’t condition the locals’ gameplay at any time.
Pellicer’s men stepped on to the pitch with a very clear script, to dominate possession and generate opportunities. During the initial stages, the Blue and Whites stalked the rival area on several occasions but weren’t successful in front of goal. First Cristian (5’) then Yanis shortly afterwards (11’) came close to opening the scoring. As time went on, both sides kept up the pace of play and the match evened out.
After 35 minutes, Blue and White goalkeeper Juan Soriano sustained injury and was substituted by Dani Barrio. ‘Carbayón’ forward, Samuel Obeng fouled the keeper in a fight for the ball, ending with Soriano being stretchered off. Without any further noteworthy actions, the scoreboard stayed at 0-0 at half-time.
In the second half, equity prevailed. Both teams attempted to dominate the wide area of the pitch and possession of the ball. The forcefulness of the defenders impeded dangerous approaches in both areas and the 0-0 draw was maintained at the end of normal time, signalling play would enter extra time.
During both halves of extra time, the tone of play remained the same. Focus was on midfield and the goals were defended well throughout. The hard, tactical work carried out by both teams looked as though the match would go to penalties, but Pablo Chavarría turned the situation around. The striker made the most of a rebound by the rival goalkeeper following a shot by latest signing, Alexander González to open the scoring in minute 118 of play. Delight filled the local dugout as the next round of the competition edged closer. The referee’s full-time whistle sealed the Blue and Whites’ pass to the third round of the competition.
