Fulham left the pitch during their friendly against Málaga at Estadio La Rosaleda on Wednesday, only for Málaga to take a penalty moments later into an empty net—after the Spaniards believed a shootout was still to follow.
The match finished 2-2 after a late equaliser. Calvin Bassey was penalised for a handball in stoppage time, allowing Eneko Jauregi to score from the spot to level the contest. With the outcome seemingly headed for penalties, a further burst of confusion followed. Málaga were expecting a shootout to decide the Costa del Sol Trophy winner and kept players on the pitch ready to take part.
But Fulham believed the match agreement meant there would be no penalty shootout if the scores were level. After the equaliser, Álvaro Arbeloa—Fulham’s former Real Madrid manager—was sent off at full-time as the teams were winding down, and he headed straight into the tunnel with the rest of the group.
Disputed agreement
Málaga took advantage of the empty net scenario. With the ball placed on the spot, Jauregi converted, then celebrated with his team-mates in front of the home support.
Fulham, however, insist that prior to kick-off both sides agreed the match would not go to a shootout in the event of a draw. The club said on X that they can confirm no penalty shootout was included if the game ended level.
Málaga’s response, set out in a post-match report on their official website, was different. The La Liga club wrote that while a penalty shootout had been scheduled, Fulham left the pitch claiming a shootout was not included in the contract. The upshot is a public disagreement between two clubs that have already both invested time into a short tournament format for pre-season—an issue that often hinges on small clauses in friendly competition rules.
For Fulham, the immediate priority remains getting their preparations back on track. They conclude their pre-season programme against Stuttgart on Saturday. Their first match of the 2026-27 Premier League season is against Chelsea at Craven Cottage on Monday, 24 August, with kick-off at 20:00 BST.
