The Martiricos squad visited the Estadio de los Juegos Mediterráneos to face UD Almería, on LaLiga SmartBank matchday 18. Today wearing the yellow strip, this was the first match the Malaguistas have played with the official fluorescent ball of the category.
There were five changes to the starting-11 in relation to the previous match, with Cristo making his first appearance in a starting line-up this season. Also in the 11 was Dani Barrio in goal, Ismael in a line of three central defenders, Luis Muñoz in midfield and Caye upfront.
The match got off to a bumpy start for the Malaguistas in this ‘Mediterranean Derby’. The plan to impose high pressure on the rival and play in Almería’s half collapsed after five minutes as Iván Calero sustained injury and was replaced by Benkhemassa. This situation meant the game plan had to be altered, moving Luis Muñoz to centre-back and Ismael to the right. However, the locals soon took the lead. An inaccuracy in the delivery by a not fully warmed up Benkhemassa was picked up by Villalba, who assisted Sadiq to put the home side in front (0-1). Just 11 minutes into the game, Pellicer’s men suffered a number of knocks in a short space of time. That said, they tried to get back into the match, even though Dani Barrio in 25’ had to intervene to deflect a shot from the edge of the area by Aketxe. ‘UDA’ also had to make an adjustment due to injury in goal after half an hour. From that point on, the Malaguistas took control of play. First Caye and then Cristian, sought to open the scoring. The feeling of danger reached its culmination in the 49th minute, as the Malaguistas gained possession. Caye and Joaquín Muñoz combined so that the first provided an assist and the Miraflores winger defined with a magnificent cross (1-1).
In the second half, Málaga CF kept the pressure on, with the first part played in Almería’s half. This was until Aketxe’s attempt that was deflected by Dani Barrio in 58’. Both teams made changes, and on behalf of the Malaguistas, Chavarría substituted Caye. Following a cross that was saved by the local keeper in 69’, Akieme made another attempt in 72’. Joaquín, with two shots at the target, as well as one from Ramón, in the space of two minutes, came close to putting Pellicer’s team in front. Lazo responded for Almería, but between Mejías and Dani Barrio the shot was deflected to a corner. In 79’, the locals scored their second goal. Maras headed the ball into goal from a Joao Carvalho cross on the right (1-2). VAR checked the action for a possible offside position, but the goal was allowed. Málaga used up all their substitutions with less than 10 minutes remaining, with a triple change, bringing on Escassi, Matos and Hicham, who hasn’t played since the second matchday. In the closing stages, Ramazani scored the definitive 1-3 with a shot from the heart of the area (93').
The three points remain in Almería following a far more even match than indicated by the result.
