A rout against Ceuta (5-2)

C.D. Leganés thrashed A.D. Ceuta at Estadio Ontime Butarque (5-2) in a match for Matchday 31 of LALIGA HYPERMOTION. Diawara (on a penalty), Cissé, Juan Cruz, and a brace from Melero sealed the rout, while Marcos (also on a penalty) and Manu Sánchez scored for the visitors.

Marcos put Ceuta ahead on a penalty kick early in the match

Igor Oca made five changes from the last matchday in Valladolid, bringing Lalo into the starting lineup after recovering from injury, along with Diawara and Álex Millán, who had served their suspensions, as well as Guirao and Juan Cruz, who were starters against Ceuta.

The match began with an early chance for Guirao in the 6th minute, though in the 9th minute, referee Orellana Cid awarded a penalty to Ceuta for a handball by Duk inside the box. Marcos stepped up to convert it, putting the visitors ahead 0-1.

Diawara, also from the penalty spot, equalized before halftime

Lega tried to respond to Ceuta’s goal with a header by Marvel in the 24th minute off a cross from Guirao, but it went over the bar. Butarque appealed for a penalty in the 30th minute after Marvel went down against Guille Vallejo, but neither the referee nor VAR deemed the play sufficient to award the penalty. Diawara had a chance in the 34th minute after a good pass behind Guirao, but he couldn’t get a shot off in the end.

In the 39th minute, the referee awarded a penalty to Lega after Álex Millán went down in the box. Diawara stepped up to convert it, scoring the equalizer with his third goal of the season. And before halftime, Lega—playing their best football—came close to making it 2-1 through Franquesa and Duk.

Cissé put Lega ahead early in the second half

The second half began with Lega’s first substitution, as Leiva came on for Lalo at right back. And it couldn’t have started better for the Pepineros, as in the 47th minute, Duk drove down the right, Cruz laid it off first-time for the onrushing Cissé, and the Guinean, after cutting inside past Vallejo, scored the 2-1 to the delight of the nearly 9,000 fans packing Ontime Butarque.

The third goal nearly came in the 51st minute from Álex Millán following another great play between Cissé and Cruz, but Vallejo thwarted the No. 23’s shot. Lega came close to scoring a third on several runs into the visitors’ box, and around the hour mark, Dani Rodríguez and Asue replaced Guirao and Álex Millán to freshen up the attack. After the referee showed Diawara a red card in the 65th minute—which VAR overturned to a yellow—Igor Oca brought on Figueredo to try to secure the result.

Cruz scored the third, and Melero sealed the win with a brace in stoppage time

The match really opened up in the final stretch. In the 85th minute, Juan Cruz scored the 3-1, assisted by Duk, to open his scoring account for the season. In the 89th minute, Ceuta narrowed the gap again on a set piece through Manu Sánchez, but in stoppage time, a brace by Gonzalo Melero—who had come on in the 87th minute for Cruz—sealed the match: the first with a first-time finish off an assist from Cissé, and the second with a header off a cross from Duk. The final score was 5-2, capping off a great match at Butarque.

Leganés thus secured a big win to snap their losing streak and now sit on 37 points in the standings. In the next matchday, the Pepineros will visit La Rosaleda to face Málaga C.F. on Sunday at 6:30 p.m.