Elche CF 1 CA Osasuna 1
Pere Milla’s 86th minute equaliser gave the ten men of Elche a deserved point against Osasuna after Budimir’s 67th minute penalty, the Serbian’s sixth goal in six consecutive matches, had put Los Rojillos in front at the Martinez Valero.
Elche had previously lost Bigas, Guti and Gonzalo Verdú through injury, the latter when Francisco had made his five the changes and down to ten men, Mojica was another casualty as, although he finished the game on the field he was little more than a passenger, unable to run or join in with any movement in play.
The Catalan striker’s goal, he had only been on the field for 15 minutes, equalled Ante Budimir’s opener from the penalty spot after Diego González’s had pulled back the Serbian striker as he shaped up to take a shot. It was the sixth consecutive game in which Budimir had hit the back of the net, a new entry in the Osasuna record books.
It was noticeable also that Osasuna’s regular penalty taker, Chimy, handed the ball to Budimir, aware that he could achieve a historic milestone, and thankfully, he didn’t fail.
The game took a heavy toll on Elche’s players with Pedro Bigas rushed to a hospital suffering from concussion, and Raúl Guti, Gonzalo Verdú and Mojica all injured, the latter remaining on the pitch but unable to run after suffering problems at the back of his right thigh.
So the end result, a point for both teams that moderately satisfies Elche, who with 39 points borders on mathematical permanence, while Osasuna, with 45 pts, remain in mid table obscurity.
Next up for Elche a trip to relegation threatened Cadiz on Saturday where they will be hoping to secure their position in next season’s La Liga lineup.
