Málaga has 48 points, eight more than on matchday 34 of last season, and has taken a giant step to ensure their permanence in Second and dreaming of something else. Here are ten reasons why the team with the lowest salary cap in professional football is winning heaven.
1.- Very happy cessation of Al Thani. The best thing that could happen to Málaga was the dismissal by court order of the horrible president / tweeter and his idle children, who had turned Málaga into their personal bank. Without this decision, the club could not have survived.
2.- José María Muñoz. Judicial administrator appointed by the judge on February 21, 2020, his mission was to save the club from disappearance. He had to put the scalpel in because radical surgery was needed to repair the damage caused by the Al Thani making decisions, some of them very tough, such as the ERE to the squad of players and employees. According to Javier Tebas, president of LaLiga, the team is now in a “almost good” situation.
3.- Dismissal of Richard Shaheen. According to some who were close to him, the American general manager signed by Al Thani was even worse than the sheikh (which is saying). He tried to sign a German sports director and Luis Fernández as a coach. He lived in a luxurious apartment in the center of Malaga paid for by the club (naturally) and forced his employees to take his bland spaniel for a walk. The first thing Muñoz did was fire him. Blessed decision.
4.- Manolo Gaspar. The Málaga sports director had to build a competitive squad with fewer resources than many Segunda B clubs and a limit of 18 professional chips. He managed to convince good players to come thanks to the fact that he was able to sell the Malaga brand. He has many things about Monchi when he started from scratch in a Seville that was in the Second Division and in ruin.
5.- Sergio Pellicer. This phrase says it all: “I was coming for a month and I have been here for more than a year.” He came to the rescue from Atlético Malagueño after the abrupt dismissal of Víctor Sánchez del Amo and through work and faith he has earned everyone's respect. Manolo looks forward to offering you “the best contract we can” to seal your renewal.
6.- Transfer of Antoñín to Granada. Here all the saints appeared. The Granada team was left without Neyder Lozano, who was injured for a long time. And the luck for Málaga was that he took an interest in Antoñín paying 1.5 million euros. Without that unexpected income, Málaga would not have been able to finish last season.
7.- The quarry to power. So far in the championship, Sergio Pellicer has played, at least once, eleven players with a subsidiary file. Many of them have been consolidated. And in this group of eleven we do not include Luis Muñoz and Juande because they already have a professional record. The quarry always to the rescue of Malaga.
8.- Performance away from home. Regarding the championship, Málaga has achieved 27 points away from La Rosaleda. Eight wins and three draws that have created an extraordinary margin of tranquility in moments where playing at home was more difficult.
9.- Innovative model. Without intending to, Málaga has managed to set a precedent in this time of crisis due to the coronavirus. Many clubs will have no choice but to do the same as the Malaguistas to manage the tremendous gaps in their cost-squad limit. Above all, those ocean liners that fail to rise to the First Division all at once this season.
10.- Management of the coronavirus. Surely this point will give you half a stay. During the season, Málaga has only had two quarantines for this reason, one was that of Luis Muñoz due to direct contact with an acquaintance and the other David Lombán. The team cannot be allowed absences for this reason and more so now that it is no longer allowed to postpone games due to COVID-19 outbreaks.