0-0 draw leaves Malaga 19th as Levante hold firm

Malaga 0-0 Levante: a draw at Estadio La Rosaleda left Malaga 19th in La Liga with one point from four games, while Levante moved to four points and remained 10th. Neither side found the net in Sunday's regular-season meeting, although Malaga had the clearest early opportunity to break the deadlock.

Missed penalty sets the tone

The decisive moment arrived in the ninth minute when Carlos Ruiz Rubio missed a penalty for Malaga. It was the closest either side came to turning an early opening into a goal, and the failure to convert kept Levante in the contest. No player scored, with both teams ultimately finishing the afternoon without a goal.

Malaga controlled much of the match territorially. The hosts had 63% possession, completed 507 accurate passes from 578 attempts and won six corners, compared with Levante's 264 accurate passes from 334 and four corners. That control produced 10 total shots and seven from inside the box, but only three Malaga efforts were on target. Levante had 11 shots overall, including six from outside the box, and also registered three shots on goal.

Levante hold firm as chances go unfinished

The numbers showed a game in which Malaga had more of the ball and created a greater share of its attempts close to goal, but the scoreline reflected the visitors' resistance and the lack of finishing on both sides. Each goalkeeper made three saves, while Malaga had five shots off target and Levante had five as well. The home side also strayed offside three times; Levante were not caught offside.

Both coaches made changes around the hour mark. Malaga replaced Pablo Martínez Andrés and Juan Cruz with Izan Merino and Joaquín Muñoz in the 59th minute, before making further substitutions involving Rafael Garrido Hierro, Carlos Puga, Dani Lorenzo and Ramón Enríquez. Levante introduced Yanis Musuayi for Iván Romero after 60 minutes and later sent on Hugo Sotelo for Enzo Bardeli.

Discipline and table impact

Malaga collected four yellow cards: Dani Lorenzo, Rafael Garrido Hierro, Pablo Martínez Andrés and Carlos Puga. Levante received two, for Adrián de la Fuente Barquilla and Aïssa Mandi, while Luís Manuel Ferreira de Castro was also booked. There were no red cards.

Manu Sánchez was the standout performer, earning a 7.5 rating after playing all 90 minutes and making 12 tackles, the highest rating in the match. Alfonso Herrero also played the full game for Malaga and made three saves, receiving a 7.3 rating. The draw extended Malaga's sequence to one draw alongside two losses in the listed form, while Levante's recent record became one win, one draw and one loss.