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Rob Palmer / ESPN commentator
Malaga
Friday, 11 April 2025, 12:00
If Millwall fans hadn't already claimed the "nobody likes us – we don't care", the players and fans of Getafe CF would have it tattooed across their chests.
A little like their London counterparts, they revel in the role of the club from the capital that sends fear into the hearts of their La Liga opponents. There's now a danger that they may spread that dread around Europe.
Since January, Getafe have gone on an incredible run of seven wins in 12 games and sit on the fringe of the UEFA qualification places. As the first task of every season - top league survival - is ensured, they can now play with freedom and have some fun.
Fun isn't a word that is often used in association with Getafe. Many football purists would claim they are anti-fun. They top one particular table every year. The discipline chart - or lack of discipline chart. Last season, 10 of their players were sent off; yet again, they have the biggest card count.
It's all part of the strategy of coach José Bordalás. He wants to make life as uncomfortable as possible for the opposition. This is a man who never played beyond the third tier and is now in his 17th coaching job. He did seasons at Benidorm as a player and then manager.
The team plays in his hard-working image. Bordalás will one day have a statue built in his honour at their suburban stadium. In his first spell, he took them to fifth place - which led to a European adventure. Following an undistinguished spell at Valencia, he returned to help secure their La Liga status - and he's continued to build.
He thrives on controversy. They don't very often make the Spanish football headlines; however, last season they were big news in all of Europe when they gave Mason Greenwood a lifeline. Most clubs wouldn't have touched the disgraced Manchester United player with a bargepole - yet he was given a hero's welcome upon signing. He repaid them with 10 important goals.
Greenwood departed in the summer and the club cashed in on two other stars. Enes Ünal moved to Bournemouth for 16m euros and Gastón Álvarez headed to Saudi Arabia for 12m euros. Borderlands just knuckled down, even though it took seven games to register their first victory of the season.
Now they are on a roll and are emerging from the shadows as contenders for the UEFA Conference or Europa League positions.
It's an incredible use of resources from a club that didn't play top-flight football until 2004. At one point in their history, the club was a supporters' "peña" for Real Madrid. They named the stadium after Alfonso Pérez, who did not even play for them. He was just a local boy who made good and played for Spain.
Back in 2011, the club launched a tongue-in-cheek marketing campaign encouraging fans to donate sperm to create a "zombie nation" of Getafe supporters. Crazy as it seems, those teenagers could be supporting the team in Europe next season.
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