Sevilla got on the board really quickly against the new up-and-coming Málaga, with a goal from Álvaro Negredo in the second minute. Jesús Navas swung in a perfect cross that just eluded two Málaga defenders and found Negredo's head; Negredo easily redirected the ball past a diving Caballero for the first goal of the evening.
Sevilla Vs. Málaga Halftime: Sevilla Leads 2-0 With Two Strikes From Negredo
The second goal came about a bit less straightforwardly: Sevilla launched a counter attack after significant pressure from Málaga, and Negredo collected a bouncing ball from Perotti in the before hammering home the 2-0. Unfortunately, the counter attack came after a particularly strong Málaga attack that culminated in a possible penalty against Sevilla’s Escudé, who hit a Joaquín cross with his arm in the penalty box. Referee Delgado Ferreiro waved play on as almost every player on Málaga raised their arms in protest.
While Sevilla are dominating on the scoreboard, Málaga will be happy with their offensive game for the most part: they created a few chances that they should have put away, but the over-riding feeling that they must have is that they don’t know each other well yet. Players seem out of sync, missing each other in space, and miss-timing their runs: this is a phenomenon that is very common with teams who have just been put together, and it’ll get better with time.
Sevilla have been very economical with their chances, converting the few that they had (and nearly scoring what would have been the goal of the year after a couple volleys in the midfield allowed Negredo to blast a on-hop shot from 4o yards out that Caballero barely saved). They look strong on the counter attack, and good in the air--two things that have come to define this Sevilla squad.
Stay tuned for more--I’m pretty sure this game has a few more goals left in it, as both teams are strong offensively but have extremely weak defenses. Always a recipe for excitement.
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