Ten-man Malaga CF strengthen grip on play-off spot with emphatic comeback win

There was a carnival atmosphere at La Rosaleda on Saturday evening after ten-man Malaga CF came back from a goal down to seal a 2-1 victory over Sporting Gijón.

After a bright start for the hosts, it was Sporting who settled quickest into the tie. The warning signs were there when keeper Alfonso Herrero was forced into clawing the ball clear after a deep cross rebounded back out off his far post.

Then, in the 12th minute, following a VAR review, the visitors claimed the lead. An onside Guille Rosas was set free down the right before squaring it for Jonathan Dubasin to convert from close range.

Malaga responded almost straight away when a penalty area scramble resulted in Adrián Niño’s tame effort being cleared off the line.

The young forward then went close again with a header that narrowly landed on the roof of the net.

The momentum then threatened to turn firmly in the hosts’ favour when, following a pitchside monitor review, the Sporting goalscorer had his yellow card upgraded to red after his high boot, albeit unintentionally, made contact with Diego Murillo’s face following an aerial duel.

In the first opening following the dismissal, Niño once again came close when he miscued his volley after the cross from the left took a deflection.

In an attempt to capitalise on this newfound impetus, coach Juan Francisco Funes removed holding midfielder Darko Brasanac and introduced striker Chupete.

The attacking change almost paid off immediately when Izan Merino went through on goal, only to be denied by an excellent save from Rubén Yáñez.

That said, having weathered the storm, Sporting looked much more in control. Then, just as the half-time whistle was approaching, a misjudged interception from Murillo just outside the Sporting box looked to have sent Gaspar Campos through on goal. However, he was quickly stopped in his tracks by the last man, Carlos Dotor.

The red card, though deserved, was entirely needless. The midfielder pulled back his opponent when there were three defenders in pursuit, and he still had an entire half of the field to run into.

Despite the setback, inside eight minutes of first-half stoppage time, Malaga still managed to carve out further chances for Merino, Joaquín and Chupete.

Forced into yet another tactical change, Funes introduced central midfielder Ramón for centre-back Einar Galilea at the break to restore balance in the engine room, effectively turning it into a game of attack versus defence.

And it didn’t take long for Malaga to find their way back into the tie. Chupete, receiving the ball on the left-hand side of the penalty area, required very little backlift to open up his body and curl the ball into the far corner, levelling the scores.

Sporting, camped in a 5-4-0 shape, did everything they could to limit space for their opponents. As a result, Malaga found it much more difficult to create openings as the second half progressed.

Aaron Ochoa forced Yáñez into a good save before fellow substitute Haitam whipped a ball wide from the resulting corner.

Then, just as the game seemed to be fizzling out into an inevitable draw, Malaga struck again. With five minutes left on the clock, Joaquín, receiving the ball as a result of Rafa's tackle, progressed unopposed towards the edge of the area before unleashing a low strike that wrong-footed Yáñez.

This ensured the home fans inside La Rosaleda were in jubilant mood, lifting the players as they navigated the stress of six minutes of added time and ultimately further solidifying their place in the playoff spots.