Málaga CF and Cádiz CF faced off on matchday 9 of LaLiga Hypermotion on the rainy afternoon of Saturday 12th October, Día de la Hispanidad, at El Nuevo Mirandilla. The stadium welcomed fans including around 400 Malaguistas.
Sergio Pellicer selected the following starting-11: A. Herrero, Jokin, Nelson, Pastor, Víctor; Izan, Manu Molina, Luca Sangalli, Larrubia, Kevin and Dioni.
The match got off to an electrifying start, with both teams exchanging chances in the early minutes. Kevin issued the first significant warning in the 5th minute. The winger, after a good slalom down the left wing, unleashed a powerful shot at the near post that the local goalkeeper, David Gil, could barely keep out.
Málaga CF increased their possession percentage as the minutes went by and flirted with a goal at times, but it was the home side that took the lead first. Former Malaguista Ontiveros took advantage of a lateral cross to score the opening goal in the 24th minute.
The goal didn’t intimidate the Blue and Whites and they insisted on finding the equaliser. In the 27th minute, Dioni assisted Larrubia with a tempting low ball to the penalty spot. The number '10' shot hard, but the local defender Carcelén cleared it.
In the 41st minute, Dioni literally came close to going level. The forward took advantage of a long ball to dribble past the goalkeeper in a one-on-one situation and, from a fairly tight angle, aimed for the goal. Luck was not on his side, and he missed by mere millimetres.
In the same minute, on the next play, Ontiveros received another lateral cross to make it 2-0 for the home team. This score remained the same at half-time.
The match began the second half with a double substitution for Málaga. Pellicer brought on Dani Lorenzo and Carlos Puga at half-time, replacing Luca Sangalli and Jokin Gabilondo.
Dioni managed to reduce the deficit in the 54th minute with a remarkable run. The forward received an assist from Larrubia from the left wing and, with calm and precision, finished low to make it 2-1.
Málaga CF continued to grow in the second half, taking control of possession and creating fluid transitions toward the opposing goal with great effectiveness.
The Blue and Whites exponentially increased their presence in the opponent's half and finally went level in the 80th minute. Sergio Castel collected a rebound in the heart of the area after a shot from Dani Lorenzo, easily beating the opposing goalkeeper to score his first goal as a Malaguista (2-2).
The match went crazy in the final moments, with quick transitions from both teams, but the scoreboard no longer changed, and the points were officially shared with the referee's three whistles.