By Joiner Martínez
Feb 27, 2024, 20:01 PM EST
The Mexican coach Javier Aguirre and his Mallorca had the pleasure of getting into the final of the Copa del Rey after beating Real Sociedad 5-4 on penalties, after finishing the ninety minutes of regulation and extra time 1-1. second leg of the KO tournament semi-finals.
The victory after the 0-0 draw registered in the first leg at the Son Moix stadium in Mallorca, allows the team of Mexican Javier ‘Vasco’ Aguirre to reach the fourth cup final in its history.
I find that it started in the typical way in which this type of qualifying rounds do: with many inaccuracies, although it is fair to mention that Real started with one more point of lucidity and success, yes, without dangerous approaches. The flood of the first minutes did not help to make the show more attractive to the viewer either.
The clearest chance of the first 45 minutes came in the form of a maximum penalty in favor of the Txuri Urdin team. Brais Méndez was in charge of launching it, although Grief guessed the Galician midfielder’s intentions and stopped the centered shot from eleven meters.
The restart couldn’t have started better for the Mallorcan club, with a goal from Giovanni González after an impeccable cross from Jaume Costa from the wing that put the royalist squad in check.
Real Sociedad sought equality with everything and that was when the team captain Txuri Urdin appeared. Mikel Oyarzabal, who had entered the field a few minutes later. A counterattack conducted in a fantastic way by the royalists ended in a superb finish in front of the goalkeeper after a pass into the space by Brais.
In extra time neither team took advantage and in penalties, we already know what can happen. Luck smiles on you, as it doesn’t. In this case, he did not smile at Mikel Oyarzabal who was the only one to miss one of the ten penalties taken. The first of them. And the football script, sometimes, is very cruel or very benevolent, since it always depends on the prism from which you look at it. Mallorca will be in the final at La Cartuja. They have to wait to find out if it will be against Atlético de Madrid or against Athletic Club.
Aguirre: “We could have easily lost”
The Mexican coach, Javier Aguirre, appeared at a press conference after the game and insisted that his team “was not a favorite” and approached the game “calm.”
and revealed: “We could have easily lost, but two keys were given: the penalty saved by Greif and the fact of taking the lead.”
“We have suffered like dogs in Anoeta, but getting to the final here is great. We came prepared, although in this locker room there are more players with relegations than with titles. The thing is that we are professionals and we had the desire to do things well to reach the final. I have similar feelings to those of 2005 against Osasuna. Now it is clear that we will not be favorites against either Atlético de Madrid or Athletic, but we will compete in La Cartuja,” the coach analyzed.
Keep reading:
Javier Aguirre’s Mallorca emerged victorious from his visit to Athletic Club
Javier Aguirre after Mallorca’s bad moment: “I am the most responsible for everything”
Javier Aguirre harshly criticized the organization of the 2030 World Cup: “It’s shit… I don’t like it”