BarcelonaWhoever had it best to avoid relegation has finally confirmed his return to the Second Division. Granada, who started the last day of the league championship with everything in favor to certify their permanence, ended up sinking after a painful draw (0-0). The Nuevo Los Cármenes has become a sea of tears after an afternoon of heart attacks in which every news that arrived turned against the Andalusian team. The relegation confirms the importance of a long-awaited Diego Martínez at this club who could now continue his career at Espanyol.
Aitor Karanka’s team has been unable to beat a Spaniard who has shown professionalism despite having nothing at stake. The white-and-blues finish fourteenth in a league in which they have met the minimum goal, permanence. The draw they have achieved in Granada has done a favor to two coaches with a Spanish past, Javier Aguirre and Sergio González, who have done the job. Mallorca beat Osasuna (0-2), and Cádiz beat Alabès (0-1).
Those in Karanka had everything in their favor to achieve permanence, but none of the requirements they needed have been met. And that the Andalusian team has come out with a Spaniard who, in the first three minutes of play, had already received two very dangerous arrivals. Luis Blanco’s players now seemed to think the job was done and acted more defensively, just waiting for the ref to blow the final whistle. Darder started playing and Melamed or Embarba showed their fangs.
Espanyol managed to threaten, but did not need to hurt a Granada whose legs began to shake as a result of Milla’s injury in the middle of the first half. The loss of the Andalusians’ engine in the middle of the field has reduced the ability to generate football for a team that has arrived relatively calm at halftime, as there was no news of goals in either Mendizorrotza or El Sadar. The scene, however, has changed radically after going through the locker rooms. All the news that has been coming in the second half has been complicating life in Granada more and more.
At the start of the second half, Ángel Rodríguez put Mallorca ahead. The goal of the Balearics added pressure to Granada, which if it failed to score against Espanyol still had a certain margin, as Cadiz was still tied. Karanka have a golden opportunity to open the can, a penalty more than doubtful at the hands of Cabrera. The play ended up marking the fate of the Andalusians, as Jorge Molina ended up shooting deflected. Nuevo Los Cármenes went from fear to depression when he learned that Cádiz were opening the can in Vitoria via Lozano and that Mallorca was leading the duel in Pamplona at the hands of Grenier.
The Granada players, morally overwhelmed, have tried to throw faith and hang balls in the pot in the area of a totally relaxed Spaniard who has been able to distribute tributes in the final stretch. Players such as David López and Dídac Vilá were able to say goodbye from the pitch, while the winger Luca Warrick had his first minutes in Primera. Granada, defeated, did not find the way to a goal that seemed easy at the beginning of the game and ended up drowning it.
