C.D. Leganés secured victory in their visit to Granada C.F. (0-2) at the Estadio Nuevo Los Cármenes, in a match corresponding to the fifth round of LALIGA HYPERMOTION. Diego García, from a penalty, and Roberto López scored the goals for the pepinero team.
Paco López made two changes to the lineup compared to the last match in León, bringing in Juan Cruz, who made his first start of the season, and Cissé, returning from his national team, in place of Miguel and Rubén Peña, who was left out of the squad due to discomfort, along with Ignasi Miquel, Franquesa, and the injured Rubén Pulido and Óscar Plano. The main novelty, however, was in the pepineros' formation, as they started with three central defenders.
Diego García put Lega ahead in the 35th minute by converting a penalty committed on Duk
Lega started looking to dominate, with a couple of runs from Naim down the left flank in the opening minutes that created danger. In the 10th minute, however, Granada had their first chance, in a quick play that Duk cleared off the line. Lega responded with a header from Duk off a cross by Naim, which Astralaga saved, although the referee disallowed the play for a prior foul by the Cape Verdean international.
Just past the half-hour mark, Granada hit the post with a shot from Faye from a tight angle, to which Cissé responded in the 33rd minute with a long-range shot that Astralaga saved. In the 34th minute, the referee awarded a penalty against Sola for a foul on Duk after a cutback by the number 11 in the box, which Diego García confidently converted to put Leganés ahead and score his first goal of the season, much to the delight of over a hundred pepineros cheering for Lega in Granada. The score was 0-1 for Paco López's side at halftime.
Roberto López scored the second shortly after coming on
The second half began without changes, with an early chance for Granada in the 50th minute through Casadesús, which Juan Soriano denied with a good save. The hosts sought the equalizer against a Leganés side that struggled to dominate possession but remained organized and looked to counterattack with space. In the 64th minute, Paco López made a triple substitution, bringing on Roberto López, Miguel, and Álex Millán in place of Melero, Juan Cruz, and Diego García.
In the 69th minute, Leganés scored their second goal of the match: Cissé intercepted a pass from Sergio Ruiz and laid it back at the edge of the box for the newly introduced Roberto López, who struck a left-footed shot on his first touch to beat Astralaga and double the pepinero lead. It was the first goal for the Aragonese midfielder in the laurel jersey.
Andrés Campos and Saïd made their official debuts late in the game
In the 82nd minute, Andrés Campos came on for Lalo, who left the field with an injury, making his debut in LALIGA as a blanquiazul player. Leganés controlled the game without facing much danger from Granada, and in added time, the final substitution was made, with the Mauritanian reserve team defender Saïd also making his debut, replacing Naim.
There was no time for more, and Leganés secured their first victory of the season, remaining unbeaten after five rounds. The next match for the pepineros will take place on Saturday (6:30 PM) at the Ontime Butarque against U.D. Las Palmas.
