The Malaguistas, with 29 points and sitting ninth in the standings, face a Ceuta team that has 32 points and lies in sixth place, occupying the final spot in the promotion playoff positions.
The match referee will be Eder Mallo. The 32-year-old from Bilbao is in his second season in the Second Division. In charge of VAR will be Rubén Ávalos from Barcelona.
AD Ceuta FC
Under the current name, the North African club has competed for four consecutive seasons in Spain’s third tier (2021–25) and, in the current 2025/26 campaign, made its debut in LALIGA HYPERMOTION.
Throughout its history, the Ceuta club has undergone numerous name changes. The current Agrupación Deportiva Ceuta Fútbol Club, established in 2013, was preceded by Asociación Deportiva Ceuta (1994–2012). Earlier still, SD Ceuta - Ceuta Sport Club until 1939 - (1932–56) and Atlético Tetuán (1933–56), both of which were dissolved in the same year after merging, as well as Atlético Ceuta, were the main representatives of football in Ceuta.
In the current AD Ceuta FC squad there are two former Málaga CF players: left-back Matos and midfielder Cristian Rodríguez. Also having played for both clubs is Swiss-born striker Lorenzo González, and there are several footballers with a background at Atlético Malagueño who have featured for Ceuta’s first team, such as Kuki Zalazar, a member of the current squad, as well as players including David Ramos, Hoyos, and Nané.
Match info
• Juan Francisco Funes remains unbeaten in the league competition since taking over as head coach. Four wins and two draws, 14 out of a possible 18 points from six matches. in which Málaga CF have scored 13 goals (an average of 2.16 per game).
• Alfonso Herrero is the only Málaga CF player to have featured in all 1,800 minutes of the league campaign. The goalkeeper from Toledo ranks second in the competition so far for total saves (70), only behind Andrés Fernández (71).
• Chupe, with seven goals, is Málaga’s top scorer in LALIGA HYPERMOTION, while Marcos Fernández, with five goals, is the visitors’ leading scorer.
• Málaga CF’s home record stands at five wins, four draws, and one loss (19 points) from 10 matches, with 19 goals scored and 11 conceded.
• AD Ceuta FC’s away record in the league is two wins, four draws, and four losses (10 points) from 10 matches, with 10 goals scored and 16 conceded.
Stats and facts
• This is the second time Málaga CF and AD Ceuta FC, under their current names, face each other in an official match at La Rosaleda. The previous meeting ended 1-1 on matchday 31 of the Primera Federación in the 2023/24 season, with Juande scoring the Malaguista goal.
• CD Málaga faced Atlético Ceuta, one of the predecessors of today’s AD Ceuta FC, eight times in the Second Division at La Rosaleda between 1956 and 1966. The Malaguistas had a strong record: seven wins and one draw, with 18 goals scored and 6 conceded.
• CD Malacitano and CD Málaga faced Ceuta Sport Club and SD Ceuta, under those names and in Málaga, between 1939 and 1949. Malacitano defeated Ceuta Sport Club 4-0 at Los Baños del Carmen in the Second Division (1939/40), whilst Club Deportivo Málaga played Sociedad Deportiva Ceuta at home twice in the Second Division (5-0 in 1941/42 and 0-1 in 1942/43), as well as once in a cup competition (6-1 in 1948/49).
• In the nine seasons Málaga CF have competed in the Second Division, on matchday 21 the team recorded four wins, four draws, and one loss. The most recent meeting, in 2024/25, was a 1-3 victory in Gijón against Real Sporting.