Fulham’s friendly against Malaga ended in a nutshell on Wednesday night, when the Spaniards scored a penalty in an empty goal as Álvaro Arbeloa’s side marched straight to the dressing room.
Malaga equalised in the last minute of regulation after full-back Calvin Bassey was penalised for a foul – giving Eneko Jauregi the chance to score the penalty and make it 2-2.
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But that was only the beginning of the chaos.
Coach Arbeloa, a former Real Madrid profile, was sent off after full-time – apparently for protesting against the referee. But he headed straight for the dressing room with the rest of his players, who were convinced that the game was over.
La Liga club Malaga, on the other hand, expected a penalty shootout, and was left on the pitch to decide the winner of the Costa del Sol trophy.
While the crowd waited for the penalty drama, striker Jauregi placed the ball on the spot and put it into an empty net – before celebrating with his teammates in front of the home fans at the Estadio La Rosaleda in southern Spain.
Fulham denies: “Agreed that there should be no penalties”
130 million euros is clearly not enough
Fulham state that both teams agreed beforehand that the game would end in a draw without a penalty.
“We can confirm that both teams agreed before the game that there would be no penalty shootout in the event of a draw,” Fulham wrote on social media.
In a match report on their own website, however, Malaga writes: “Although a penalty shootout was planned, Fulham left the pitch claiming that penalties were not included in the contract.”
Fulham finish their pre-season against Stuttgart on Saturday.
The 2026/27 Premier League opener awaits against Chelsea at Craven Cottage on Monday 24 August at 20:00 BST.
