Valladolid 0 - Málaga 0

Valladolid: Bizzarri; Torres Gómez, Mustafá, Mario, Marcos; Colsa, Peña; Fernando Sales, Olivera (Sousa 60'), Oscar Sánchez (Chema 60'); Pachón (Aganzo 75'). 4-2-3-1.
Málaga: Contreras; Josemi, Fernando Sanz, Roteta, Valcarce; Gerardo, Romero (Manu 72'), Sandro (Leko 72'), Musampa (Miguel Angel 80'); Darío Silva, Dely Valdés. 4-4-2.

Team changes: Valladolid: Mario, Fernando Sales, Oscar Sánchez for Caminero, Javier Moré, Ciric / Málaga: No change.

Goals: None.

An unusually defensive Málaga side scraped a 0-0 draw at Valladolid to hold on to eighth spot. It was a dull game with few chances, with the visitors tired after a long trip to Poland for Tuesday night's UEFA cup tie and Valladolid off form recently following their good start to the season. Having rested players in the past and failed, Joaquín Peiró put out a starting line up with only one change from his European side, Valcarce coming back in for Litos. Moré was still having injury problems in his defence, but his two wingers Sales and Sánchez returned which meant that the manager's son Javier dropped out of the line up to the substitutes' bench.

Dely Valdés thought he had scored for the visitors in the fourth minute when his effort was cleared off the line by Peña with keeper Bizzarri beaten, the referee turning away appeals that the ball had crossed the line. It was Málaga's only sight of goal though in all the first half, and the home side came close to scoring when Pachón hit the post from a wide angle. After the interval the visitors sat even further back, although Darío Silva almost caught the Valladolid defence unprepared when he brought a good save out of Bizzarri on a quick breakaway.

Only Colsa was standing out against the grey background though, and he headed just over the bar from a Marcos free kick. Later on Marcos tested Contreras with a shot which almost crept in on the near post, but this was destined to be a no score draw, and the crowd started to leave early. Even referee Megia Dávila was bored. He only showed one yellow card all night, to Málaga's Gerardo. It was that sort of evening.