Javier Aguirre he did it again. The Mexican coach managed to get Mallorca into the final of the Copa del Rey this Tuesday after an intense second leg match of the semifinals against Real Sociedad that ended up being decided from the penalty spot with a 5-4 in favor of the Balearic team.
After having tied without goals in the first leg at the beginning of this month, both teams arrived at the second leg with the need to achieve victory to retain one of the two tickets for the decisive match that will be played on Saturday, April 5 in Seville.
However, after an intense first half at the Reale Arena in San Sebastián, it was Mallorca took the first step with the goal scored by Giovanni González (m.50) by heading a cross from the left wing launched by Jaume Costas.
The joy of the Balearic team did not last long, since Mikel Oyarzabal (m.71) was in charge of restoring parity on the scoreboard after receiving a pass between the defenders and first taking a cross shot inside the area to put the 1-1.
That result was maintained until the 90th minute and then in the two half-hour overtimes that left the table set for a penalty shootout in which Oyarzabal went from hero to villain for Real Sociedad who came into this tie with the role of favorite.
However, Javier Aguirre already knew what it was like to get into a Copa del Rey final, leaving the favorite on the way. This is what happened in the 2004-2005 season, when while leading Osasuna he managed to qualify for the decisive stage in which he ended up losing to Betis.
But this Tuesday The team led by the Mexican coach has reasons to smile after winning the penalty shootout 5-4 with all his players converting their shots, while Oyarzabal, first to shoot for Real, found himself face to face with the Balearic goalkeeper, Dominik Grief, who stopped the shot.
In this way, Mallorca achieves the epic of getting into the final of a Copa del Rey in which it has shown a completely different side to what its season in LaLiga has been. Javier Aguirre’s team is undefeated in this cup, although in the Spanish championship it continues to flirt with the relegation spots.
This qualification for the final, where they will face off against the winner of the series between Atlético de Madrid and Athletic Club, should serve as a mental boost for the Balearic Islands to try to react definitively in LaLiga and finish ensuring permanence while aiming for achieve another epic next April 5 in Seville.
Keep reading:
– Rafa Márquez will continue as technical director of the FC Barcelona subsidiary for next season, according to a report from ESPN
– Guillermo “Memo” Ochoa was included in the ideal eleven for matchday 26 of Serie A despite the bad moment that Salernitana is going through
– Santiago Giménez continues to be targeted by his critics for his low level with Feyenoord: “In Almere it was nothing and it is not the first time”