MCF made their debut at the new Las Gaunas stadium on a chilly day in La Rioja, behind closed doors due to COVID-19, which is why one of our captains was absent from the squad list today, David Lombán. On the pitch, Pellicer maintained the same formation as in recent weeks, with the only change to the starting-11 being Alexander in place of Isma Casas.
In minute 7, the locals generated the first opportunity, a shot from Paulino that was deflected by Juan Soriano. Logroñés got off to a good start but Málaga gradually began to enter the game. Particularly on the left wing, where Yanis was pretty active. The Red and White dominance of the ball was countered by a well-positioned Málaga defence awaiting a quick counter-attacking transition.
The first half continued with barely any prominence in either of the areas. Málaga, showing good high pressure without the ball, sparked numerous mistakes from Logroñés, although they didn’t reflect any real chances. This was until just before half-time. Yanis headed the ball into the goal following a corner, an action that was initially ruled out, but VAR allowed the clearly legal goal (0-1, 43’).
In the second half, Pellicer’s men, dressed in yellow today, continued with their game plan, against Logroñés who were forced to go all out whilst trailing on the scoreboard. In the Malaguista engine room, Jozabed grew between the lines as time went on. Every pass or hit of the ball by the Sevilla-born playmaker was the epitome of technical skill. In 71', a long shot from ‘Joza’ grazed the left post.
Jairo, in place of Joaquín, refreshed Málaga’s right wing in the closing stages. In the run-up to the 90th minute, Yanis served up an indirect free kick that Luis Muñoz headed into the net, but the goal was disallowed for being offside.
Minute 81 was a special time for Loren Zúñiga. The ‘juvenil’ striker, wearing the number ‘45’ jersey, made his official first team debut in substitution of Caye. Málaga, superior to the rival throughout the second half, came close to a second goal in 83’, with a Luis Muñoz shot to the crossbar. In 89’, Cristo and Benkhemassa came on in place of Jozabed and goal-scorer, Yanis. The referee added four minutes of stoppage time, but there was no time for more. MCF claimed a well-deserved win, the second on the bounce, to hit 40 points and a mid-high position in LaLiga SmartBank. Vamos, Málaga!
