Headline: Fulham’s Friendly Ends in Confusion as Malaga Scores into Empty Net
Fulham’s pre-season friendly against Malaga took an unexpected turn on Wednesday, culminating in a peculiar incident where Malaga scored a penalty into an unoccupied net as Alvaro Arbeloa’s squad exited the pitch.
The match saw Malaga level the score in the dying moments of the game. Defender Calvin Bassey was penalized for a handball, allowing Eneko Jauregi to successfully convert the penalty, bringing the score to 2-2.
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This late equalizer was just the beginning of the unfolding chaos.
Arbeloa, the former Real Madrid manager, received a red card for allegedly arguing with the referee at the conclusion of the match and joined his players in heading down the tunnel, under the impression that the game had concluded.
However, Malaga, a La Liga team, anticipated a penalty shootout and remained on the field, ready to determine the winner of the Costa del Sol Trophy.
With fans eager for a shootout, striker Jauregi placed the ball on the penalty spot and scored into the empty net, celebrating with his teammates in front of the local crowd at Malaga’s Estadio La Rosaleda.
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Fulham later clarified that both teams had previously agreed there would be no penalty shootout in the event of 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 stated on X.
In a post-match analysis on Malaga’s official website, the La Liga club noted: “Although a penalty shootout had been scheduled, Fulham left the pitch, claiming that a shootout had not been included in the contract.”
Following this match, Fulham will wrap up their pre-season training against Stuttgart on Saturday, August 15.
The team’s inaugural match of the 2026-27 Premier League season is set to take place against Chelsea at Craven Cottage on Monday, August 24.
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.
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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.
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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, 15 August.
Their first match of the 2026-27 Premier League season is against Chelsea at Craven Cottage on Monday, 24 August.
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