Cartagena comes back and tombs down the Eibar leader

Cartagena, with the Frenchman Yann Bodiger as a defensive and offensive reference and author of two free-kick goals, has cut short a streak of ten games without losing for Sociedad Deportiva Éibar, leader of LaLiga SmartBank and who appeared at the Cartagonova stadium without having conceded no goals in their four previous games and that they have taken four in a row (4-1).

It was a full afternoon for Cartagena and disastrous for the Basque team, who went ahead on the scoreboard but then were clearly outmatched.

The black and whites, who had not won for four games, took it out on them and ended up enjoying themselves against an opponent who, despite everything, retains first position, now with a single point advantage over Unión Deportiva Almería and Real Valladolid.

Cartagena, for its part, reaches seventh place with 43 and bordering on the positions that give the right to dispute promotion to the First Division.

The clash began with the home team attacking and thus, when barely two minutes had elapsed, Sergio Tejera, with a header and being close to the goal, sent the ball to the crossbar after a good cross from Bodiger.

Still within the first ten minutes, Nacho Gil, a novelty in the eleven replacing the injured Álex Gallar, did score, but the goal, which he achieved beating Ander Cantero in heads-up, was annulled for offside.

The first time that Eibar stepped on the local area in danger was to get ahead. Juan Diego Molina “Stoichkov” did it in the 19th minute after José Corpas headed in a cross hanging into the area and the striker, faced with the enormous passivity of Toni Datkovic, beat Marc Martínez to achieve his fifteenth goal in the championship.

(+) See the goals and the summary of the match

Rubén Castro looked for the equalizer, but the defense cleared his shot and so did Sergio Tejera again with a shot that went over the crossbar.

Stoichkov, for his part, was able to make it 0-2 in a counter action that he did not define well and finished off wide.

When everything indicated that Gaizka Garitano’s men would go into the break with an advantage, Bodiger leveled the match. The Frenchman launched a direct free kick, the ball all in the barrier, specifically in Stoichkov himself, and that dislodged Ander Cantero.

The match, balanced until then, resumed with a very good opportunity for the visitor José Corpas, who shot wide after a corner kick and another better one for the local Rubén Castro, who was crossed by Anaitz Arbilla.

The corner was taken advantage of by Mohammed Dauda to clinch a loose ball in the area after Pablo De Blasis hung it and Ander Cantero made a false start.

Luis Carrión’s team claimed a penalty for a clear grab on Nacho Gil inside the Basque area and shortly after José Corpas tried once again but without finding a goal, as did Edu Expósito with a couple of deflected shots.

Éibar, with Gustavo Blanco Leschuk, Fran Sol and Stoichkov at the forefront of the attack, resorted to direct play but lacked ideas to damage Cartagena’s defensive network.

In the final stages, only a header from Chema Rodríguez with the ball going high after a corner and Efesé, in the rain, held on until the end to round off their victory.

He did it 3-1 in a counterattack culminating in a goal by Alfredo Ortuño from a pass from Bodiger and later with the lace.

The match ended with a red card to Stoichkov in the 95th minute for fouling Julián Delmás when he was already facing the visiting goalkeeper. In fact, he scored but the goal was not worth it. However, on the free kick, Bodiger did establish the final 4-1 -two goals and an assist from the midfielder- in a stadium given over to his team.