The fallen giant rises: Malaga return to Segunda Division after an incredible comeback in extra time
Malaga has had one of the great falls from grace in the history of Spanish football in the last six years. They were a consistent La Liga team for almost 20 years at the point of their relegation in 2018, and in 2022-23, they were relegated from Segunda. However, a year later, they were back in the second tier – and in extremely dramatic fashion.
Malaga lead 2-1 in Saturday's second leg of their play-off final against Nastic. Things looked to be going well for them when the hosts were reduced to 10 men with the score still 0-0 on the night, but an Alan Godoy goal forced extra time. It got even worse for the visitors in the 93rd minute, as Gorka Santamaria made it 3-2 overall to Nastic.
Because Nastic finished higher in their respective First Federation group, Malaga needed to score twice to secure promotion. Surprisingly, they did. Dioni made it 3-3 on aggregate in the 108th minute, before Antonio Cordero scored in the second minute of stoppage time to secure promotion, sparking wild scenes.
Malaga is back in the second tier of Spanish football! They did so in dramatic fashion tonight, scoring twice in extra time to secure a 4-3 win over 10-man Nastic.
The winning goal came from Antonio Cordero in the 122nd minute!pic.twitter.com/ptLBkPlxhj
— Football España (@footballespana_) June 22, 2024
Heartbreak for Nastic, but ecstasy for Malaga. They will return to Segunda from next season, and will hope to start their climb The league.
