Malaga CF's winless start to the La Liga season hit a new low on Sunday night, as Real Sociedad ran out comfortable 5-2 winners at La Rosaleda.
Looking to exploit opponents who had played in Europe midweek, Malaga coach Juanfran Funes made four changes ahead of the match, recalling José Salinas, Izan Merino and Carlos Dotor, and starting Adrián Niño alongside Chupete as a reward for his point-saving performance against Espanyol. However, that plan unravelled within just three minutes when Take Kubo beat his marker and fired past Alfonso Herrero from the edge of the box.
Malaga then had a spell on the ball, and Niño almost equalised with a shot struck with the outside of his boot.
However, the visitors kept breaking through midfield with ease. Orri Óskarsson was denied when clean through, but he made no mistake on his second attempt to double the lead in the 26th minute. By half time, whistles could be heard around the stadium.
Funes brought on Adam Aznou and Ramón at the break, and his side improved in tempo and possession. Niño pulled one back on 54 minutes with a fine finish from Pablo Martínez’s pass, which lifted the 27,935 crowd.
However, their hopes lasted only five minutes before Spain striker Mikel Oyarzabal restored the two-goal cushion with a precise shot from the edge of the area.
End to end
From there the game became stretched. Pablo Martínez struck from inside the box to make it 3-2 on 66 minutes, but Oyarzabal replied almost immediately with a near-identical effort.
Substitute Gonçalo Guedes then completed the scoring on 73 minutes, finishing a move for the visitors in which Oskarsson could already have scored.
Speaking after the game, Funes said: "If we’re not clinical in both boxes, it’s very difficult."
The result leaves his team bottom of the table with four points from nine games, still searching for a first victory since returning to the top flight after eight seasons away.
Not even a quarter of the season has been played, but Malaga need a swift response if they are to avoid being cut adrift at the bottom.