Cádiz breaks its long drought to secure a point that means everything

Cadiz closes Celta during the 2-2 draw.Photo: Roman Rios/EPA” src=”https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/hh2t5r0nr.E48vs.uQAxPQ–/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTU3Ng–/https://media.zenfs.com/en/theguardian_763/357ae914fb1406dab9 2baae83d60d646″ data-src=”https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/hh2t5r0nr.E48vs.uQAxPQ–/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTU3Ng–/https://media.zenfs.com/en/theguardian_763/357ae914fb1406dab9 2baae83d60d646 “/>

“This was a light of hope,” said Mauricio Pellegrino, a sudden flash that brought them back to life. Cádiz had tried everything. They had changed the coach, changed the players and even changed their shirts. They had also tried free transfers and free tickets. They had hosted Valencia, Athletic, Real Sociedad and Betis, had been to Pamplona, ​​Villarreal, Vitoria and Granada, and it did no good. They had gone through all the centre-forwards they had, which is a lot, but it didn’t happen. They had not scored in five games, soon to be six; they had only scored one in eight, and that was a penalty in a pasting. They had not won in 21 league games, almost six months. They were ready. And then someone had a bright idea. Have you tried just hitting it?

On Sunday afternoon in the 100th minute of the biggest match, Darwin Machís did just that. As fast as he could the first time he ran in. From the top left corner of the area, the clock reading 99.02, he hit a shot that you actually could to belong, as the thud echoed as the ball ripped into the near post. He had only been on the field for a while, but with one shot he had breathed new life into his team. It was just the equalizer; Cádiz still haven’t won since the first day of September and the 2-2 draw against Celta Vigo didn’t even move them out of the relegation zone. But in that moment of madness – the bench emptying, teammates tearing down the sideline after the goal scorer, their savior – it felt like everything.

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This match had been huge, after all the biggest of the season so far. The Celta coach, Rafa Benítez, had studiously avoided calling it a final, even though most managers and every newspaper are happy to mention any old match these days. But his side’s trip to Cádiz, 18th versus 17th, was “life or death”, claimed Diario de Cádiz. Four points from safety, catching Celta was Cádiz’s only hope of survival; they couldn’t allow them to slip any further. This was one they had to win. Lose and they would be six points and goal difference behind, two wins from safety for a team that had won just twice all season – in weeks one and four.

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In the week before the match, Cádiz had offered tickets to its members to pack things up. They also presented a new shirt especially for the occasion, exchanging Brazilian yellow for light blue. Inspired by the sea, a nod to the navy, compass rose and anchor in one corner, Juan Sebastián Elcano training ship at the neck, waves all around, it would have been bad enough anyway; wearing them against Celta, whose colors they had adopted, was even worse. But they had to try something. And the last two times they had worn special one-off shirts – purple in 2021-2022 and a hideous carnival-inspired orange thing the year after – it had worked, so it was worth a try. Everything was for a club where they no longer seemed to be themselves.

If there’s one place where football is fun, it’s in the bay, all bright yellow and loud. Home to Spain’s first constitution and largest carnival, life here is a joke, even when it’s tough. On the way to the ground, a sentence on the wall declares: “whoever is against Cádiz is against humanity.” This is a nice place, but also a pleasantly crazy place; it’s a club that feels like it’s doing a good job and that loyal fans really love. Or, at least, it should be. Lately, however, there has been tension and boredom, and a pessimism that takes over the most optimistic people of all. There is little confidence in the president and not much more in the players, in probably the worst team in Spain.

That wasn’t the case for most of Sunday. Eleven minutes into Cádiz a goal was already achieved thanks to a nice strike by Iago Aspas. In the 58th minute Williot Swedberg made it 2-0 and it was hard to imagine a way back when no one in La Liga had scored fewer goals than Cádiz, only Valencia had scored fewer shots, no one had a lower xG and there Not since Logroñés almost thirty years ago has it been a La Liga team with so few goals.

Another attempt at an attacking line had given way, fans were whistling for the departing Maxi Gómez – 21 games, no goals. Top scorer Chris Ramos and Sergi Guardiola had a chance, and although there were actually some chances this time, they scored only five and no goals respectively as time expired. Cádiz had not scored from open play for almost 800 minutes; on Sunday, supporters could be forgiven for thinking this would never happen again. With twelve weeks to go, it looked like the relegation race would also be fought: record-breaking Almería, the best worst team ever – able to get two past Atlético, Madrid, Barcelona and Girona, but not win a single game – had all but disappeared. And so it seemed to be Granada and Cádiz.

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When Juanmi finally scored in the 66th minute, the supporters could hardly believe it, the explosion was intense. Some in the stands had no choice but to cry. But one goal was, well, one goal. Two was another matter – fifteen games had passed since the last time they did that – and as for three, forget it. When Guardiola had just about the easiest chance you could ever imagine at 98.33 to at least get a draw, and he almost completely missed the ball from five yards out, there was something almost inevitable about it. This was the kind of astonishing miss that said it all. However, from the corner it rolled into Darwin’s path. “I didn’t think so,” he said. The odds were about 6,985 times greater than the one Guardiola had just missed and the clock read 99.02, but his shot was ridiculousshooting into the net, as cleverly as neatly hit.

This was the resurrection, the life delivered by Darwin. They had crashed, all but disappeared. But one ridiculous swipe of his right boot and suddenly they believed, La Voz de Cádiz called it “the last cry of hope”.

Real Madrid 1-0 Sevilla, Las Palmas 1-1 Osasuna, Real Betis 3-1 Athletic Bilbao, Cadiz 2-2 Celta Vigo, Almeria 2-2 Atlético, Alaves 1-1 Mallorca, Barcelona 4-0 Getafe, Real Sociedad 1 -3 Villarreal.

Monday Girona vs Rayo Vallecano.

“We had them on the canvas,” Celta’s captain Aspas said afterwards. Two weeks ago, an 89th-minute goal saw Celta beat Getafe 3-2. Last week a 97th minute penalty had them defeated against Barcelona. And now this, in the 100th minute, a cruel accident that no longer seemed entirely coincidental: against Real Madrid they were defeated in the 81st, against Mallorca in the 85th, against Girona in the 91st and against Athletic in the 98th. Sevilla equalized against them in the 84th. Goals in the 84th and 97th saw them go from victory to defeat against Las Palmas. And Barcelona came from 2-0 down to beat them 3-2 with goals in the 81st, 85th and 89th. Almost half of their matches are gone from them after 80 minutes; they have now dropped points from the 89th minute on seven occasions. Fourteen points flew in those final minutes, enough to put them on the edge of Europe, but Aspas said: “If we’re down there it’s for a reason.”

If Cádiz is, it is for a reason. They remain in the bottom three, three points from safety, and are arguably the worst team in La Liga, still candidates to sneak into the Segunda. It was only a draw. And yet, it is otherwise, life provided by Darwin. “Before the match I would have said a point isn’t terrible, but now it feels like we lost,” said Celta defender Carl Starfelt; for Cádiz it felt like they had won, like they had something to hold on to, the release huge. Rubén Alcaraz was in tears. Guardiola vowed: “We are in the fight.” The players were in front of the fans full-time; forget the fatalism, this time there was applause and singing, another communion, finally a little happiness, a little faith. “I admit the atmosphere is tense,” Pellegrino said. “Today, unlike other games, we fought to the end; the players felt like they could do it. This team is alive.”