The first Sunday of 2026 brought the 20th matchday of LALIGA HYPERMOTION for Málaga CF and Real Sporting. On a cold afternoon, El Molinón – Enrique Castro ‘Quini’ hosted around a hundred Málaga fans in the stands to support Funes’ team.
The coach made changes to the starting-11 after the Christmas break, fielding a two-striker formation for the first time since taking charge of the Blue and White first team. The starting line-up comprised of: A. Herrero; C. Puga, Murilo, Einar, Rafita; D. Larrubia, Dotor, Izan M., Aaron Ochoa; Chupe and Niño.
Málaga CF started the match with a great chance for Chupe. Larrubia tried to score from the edge of the box, but Yáñez cleared the ball. The rebound fell to Puga, who found the number 9 inside the area. The Academy-trained forward aimed for the bottom corner of the goal, but the home keeper made a worthy save and deflected the ball for a corner.
Until the 35th minute, possession alternated between both teams without any clear chances. Then, after a great collective move, Larrubia found Chupe inside the box. This time, the number 9 didn’t miss and scored 0-1 on the scoreboard at the Asturian stadium.
Funes’ men continued with their strategy of keeping possession and looking for the opponent’s goal. Evidence of this came in another great chance: Niño smashed a powerful header against the crossbar following a good cross from Puga on the right (41’). The match went into half-time with the score at 0-1.
No changes were made after the break, and Málaga CF stuck to the same plan. Real Sporting looked for an equaliser, and the referee disallowed a home goal for a foul by Otero on Murillo. However, Málaga CF extended their lead near the hour mark. Chupe struck powerfully with his left foot, and after a rebound from Yáñez, Niño got ahead of his marker to make it 0-2 (59’).
In the 64th minute, Funes made a double substitution: Joaquín and Rafa R. came on for Niño and Aaron Ochoa. Ten minutes later (73’), there was a very clear chance to score the third. Chupe cleverly evaded his marker and found Dotor, but in the one-on-one, he couldn’t beat the Sporting goalkeeper.
With just over 10 minutes remaining, a ball crossed into the area struck Einar’s arm, and after consulting VAR, the referee awarded a penalty to Real Sporting. Otero converted from the spot to make it 1-2 (81’).
In the 85th minute, Oliván was sent off after a dangerous challenge on Larrubia, leaving Funes’ side with a numerical advantage for the final stretch. Two minutes later, Lobete, on his first touch after coming off the bench, calmly finished past Yáñez to seal the game (1-3, 87’).
After 10 minutes of added time, the match ended with the same result as in the 24/25 season in Gijón. The victory places Málaga CF in the upper-mid section of the table after 20 matches, with 29 points. Vamos, Málaga!
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