In an epic game of cup football, and against all the odds, Real Mallorca beat Champions League side Real Sociedad 4-5 on penalties in a stormy San Sebastian on Tuesday night. The game finished 1-1 after extra time. Arta’s Sergi Darder slotted home the decisive spot kick to put the islanders and their fans into footballing dreamland.
Star for the Palma side was their second-choice Slovakian goalkeeper, Dominik Greif, who pulled off two wonder penalty saves to put “Los Bermellones” into the Copa del Rey final to be played in La Cartuja, Sevilla, on April 6.
Mallorca’s 65-year-old Mexican coach, Javier Aguirre, showed a master class in tactics, silencing the 40,000 Anoeta crowd and sent his team of heroes into the history books. Mallorca repelled everything the Txuri-Urdin threw at them and the cacophony of blaring car horns late into the night in Palma showed the feelings of many Mallorquinistas.
There’s nothing better than unfashionable underdogs beating the odds-on favourites to get the adrenalin pumping and yours truly got a few of the prematch predictions spot on. Being an avid fan of Dad’s Army, Real Mallorca proved the point that the big boys “Don’t like it up ‘em!”
Mallorca’s goal was scored by Uruguayan rightback Gio Gonzalez who headed home in the 49th minute. The goal was confirmed after an agonisingly long VAR review. Gio came from Peñarol three years ago and has turned into a key player in the squad.
Spanish international Mikel Oyarzabal levelled the score in the 70th minute with a right-footed shot from the centre of the box, which nestled in the bottom lefthand corner of the net. That strike put Sociedad level and it was game on. Oyarzabal had made amends for an earlier spot kick miss, which was brilliantly saved by Greif.
The end-to-end game went to added-on time, then the dreaded penalty shoot-out lottery became reality. By this time yours truly was watching proceedings from behind the sofa, through fingers over the eyes. Vedat Muriqi, Manu Morlanes, Omar Mascarell and newcomer Nemanja Radojic all made no mistake from 11 metres.
Then Sergi Darder, who’s been under fire for some lacklustre performances, banged in the winner, and he looked like a born-again footballer.
This was unquestionably one of these nights to remember in the history of Real Mallorca as they reached their fourth final, the last one being in 2003 when, in what was called the “Samuel Eto’o final” we beat Spain’s oldest football club Recreativo Huelva (where the strawberries come from !), 3-0 in Elche.
SUMMING UP: Mallorca went toe-to-toe with Real Sociedad for the third time this month and the clash was on a knife edge following a goalless stalemate at the Son Moix on February 5. Now here’s the really, really big news, little Real Mallorca are guaranteed a place in the money-spinning Spanish Super Cup which will take place in Saudi Arabia next January.
That competition is contested by four teams, one of them Atletico Madrid or Athletic Bilbao who play the other Cup semifinal on Thursday night. Real Madrid look nailed-on certainties with one of Girona (who we play here at 18:30 on Sunday) or Barcelona being the likeliest candidates to round out the quartet of clubs.
Many Mallorquinistas are already checking out their flights and accommodation availability for the final as the club enter another phase in their 108-year existence.