Fulham leave pitch as Malaga take penalty into empty net

Image caption, Fulham conceded in the final minute of normal time

Fulham conceded in the final minute of normal time

Fulham's pre-season friendly against Malaga ended in bizarre fashion on Wednesday, with the Spaniards taking a penalty into an empty net as Alvaro Arbeloa's side headed down the tunnel.

Malaga equalised in the last minute of normal time, when defender Calvin Bassey was penalised for a handball that allowed Eneko Jauregi to convert from the penalty spot to make it 2-2.

But that was only the start of the chaos.

Former Real Madrid boss Arbeloa was sent off for seemingly remonstrating with the referee at full-time but he headed straight down the tunnel with the rest of his players, who believed that the match was over.

But La Liga side Malaga were expecting a penalty shootout to follow, and remained on the pitch ready to decide the winner of the Costa del Sol Trophy.

With fans awaiting a shootout, striker Jauregi placed the ball on the spot and converted into an empty net before celebrating with his team-mates in front of the home support at Malaga's Estadio La Rosaleda ground in southern Spain.

Figure caption, Fulham friendly ends with bizarre penalty shootout

Fulham friendly ends with bizarre penalty shootout

Fulham maintain both sides agreed the match would end without a shootout should it end in a draw.

"We can confirm that prior to the match, both teams agreed that there would not be a penalty shootout in the event of a draw," Fulham wrote on X.

In a post-match report on Malaga's website, the La Liga club wrote: "Although a penalty shootout had been scheduled, Fulham left the pitch, claiming that a shootout had not been included in the contract."

Fulham conclude their pre-season preparations against Stuttgart on Saturday.

Their first match of the 2026-27 Premier League season kicks off against Chelsea at Craven Cottage at 20:00 BST on Monday, 24 August,

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