Image: LanzaroteDeportiva
New draw achieved by UD Lanzarote on their home ground, which feels like little due to how the match unfolded. Sporting San José conquered a valuable draw, in a match they played with ten players from the second minute of the match due to the expulsion of Víctor. The Rojillos were unable to read the match and rarely created danger for the crowded defense of the Gran Canaria team. A draw that allows Lanzarote to cut differences and Sporting San José to continue in the fight for fourth place.
The match began with incidents, with Sporting San José being left with one less player in the 2nd minute of the match. Víctor headbutted Falo, an action that the referee saw and punished with a direct red card. The numerical inferiority caused the Gran Canaria team to take a step back, bringing together the lines of the midfield and defense when UD Lanzarote tried to attack.
The match had no rhythm in the first half, with UD Lanzarote being infected by the slow pace that Sporting San José tried to impose on the field. The first dangerous action for the home side came in the 17th minute of the match. Toñito put an excellent pass for his teammate Kennedy to be left alone in front of the goalkeeper, and his shot ended up hitting Marko's body.
UD Lanzarote had the ball in their possession, although without ideas on how to open the crowded defense of Sporting San José. The coach asked from the bench to attack through the wings, although the players insisted on doing it through the center. The clearest action was had by Echedey in the 26th minute, with a shot from the edge of the area that would end up hitting the post of the visitors' goal. The first half of the match ended with a goalless draw.
At the beginning of the second half, the coach of UD Lanzarote, Adolfo Pérez, made two changes to give the team more depth on the wings, bringing in Ángel Gil and Yaco. The local team's game improved in this second half, although as the end of the match approached, they became desperate and began to overuse the direct game. Sporting San José maintained its defensive framework, stretching its lines somewhat in this second half.
The best local chance came in the 67th minute of the match. A cross from Ángel Gil from the right wing was headed in from close range by Kennedy, with goalkeeper Marko saving the goal. In the continuation of the play, Toñito was grabbed inside the area, an action that the referee did not understand as a penalty. The protests cost Echedey the second yellow card, leaving UD Lanzarote with ten players on the field.
One of the few chances for Sporting San José came in the 75th minute. Alejandro González stole a ball in the center of the field, stood inside the area after getting past several defenders, and his shot was saved by goalkeeper Agoney from below. It was a phase in which Sporting San José stretched lines and was able to create problems for the UD Lanzarote defense.
Until the end of the match, it was a case of wanting and not being able for UD Lanzarote. Desperation began to take hold of the local players, abusing the direct game and allowing the visiting defense to clear each of the actions without problems. The match ended with a goalless draw, a point celebrated in style by the Sporting San José squad for the way the match unfolded.
UD Lanzarote will now face two consecutive matches away from home, visiting CD El Cotillo on the island of Fuerteventura in the next match. The Rojillos face the final stretch of the season with a ten-point advantage over the fifth-placed team and with 18 points remaining in play.
Match Details
UD Lanzarote (0): Agoney, Raúl, Ignacio (Angel Gil 46), Falo, Francis, Brad, Kennedy, Kilian (Yaco 46), Rosmen, Echedey and Toñito (Andrea 83)
Real Sporting San José (0): Marko, Óscar, Adrián, Cristóbal, Roberto Jesús, Roberto Melián, Alejandro González (Aythami 87), Moisés (Jesús Yeray 73), Aníbal (Samuel 62), David and Víctor.
Referee: Juan José López García, assisted on the sidelines by Blas Díaz Martín and Pedro Hernández Álvarez. Showed a direct red card to Víctor in the 2nd minute for Sporting San José and a second yellow card to Echedey in the 67th minute for UD Lanzarote. Booked Brad, Kennedy and Toñito for UD Lanzarote and David and Aníbal for Sporting San José.
Incidents: Ciudad Deportiva Lanzarote, about 200 spectators. Match corresponding to matchday 3 of the Canarian group of the Third Division. A minute of silence was observed in memory of Estrella Betancort, wife of a former director of UD Lanzarote.
