Leganés 3-2 Granada result, stats and report

Two goals in seven minutes. One own goal conceded. A dramatic final-minute clincher. This was not a tidy football match. But Leganés will not care one bit. They got the three points, and in this division, that is all that matters. End of.

The First Seven Minutes Did The Damage

Leganés came out and competed from the first whistle. That is the basics. You set the tone early, you put the opposition on the back foot, and you make them feel the pressure of your own ground. Naim García did exactly that in the fourth minute, finishing with his left foot to make it 1-0. Patrick Soko added a second with a right-foot shot in the seventh minute, and the game was already there to be won.

The thing is, when you score twice that quickly, you have a responsibility. You manage the game. You keep it simple. You do not switch off. Leganés did not entirely hold to that standard, but they did enough. That matters.

Leganés Shot Themselves In The Foot

Ignasi Miquel put the ball into his own net on 16 minutes, and that is when the nerves will have crept in. Going from 2-0 to 2-1 in the same first half is a gift to the opposition. It hands them belief they had no right to have. Leganés had done the hard work and then handed Granada a lifeline through sheer sloppiness.

Listen, own goals happen. But they happen less when your defenders are switched on and alert. Miquel was hooked at half-time, replaced by Javi Montero in a triple substitution at the break. That tells you the manager saw a problem and dealt with it. I respect that. You identify what is not working and you fix it. No excuses.

Granada's Bright Spell After The Break

Granada came out for the second half with purpose. Alejandro Marqués headed home in the 52nd minute, assisted by Sergio Rodelas who had only just come on at the interval, and suddenly it was 2-2. Their manager made changes and they worked. Credit where it is due.

The thing is, Granada were the better team in terms of possession, finishing with 57 per cent of the ball. They had 17 shots in the box to Leganés's 12. They put in 25 crosses. They won 48 duels to Leganés's 39. On paper, over the course of the match, they competed hard. But their goalkeeper made nine saves. Nine. That is not a goalkeeper keeping a clean sheet. That is a goalkeeper keeping his team in the contest.

Granada also hit the woodwork twice. That is the sort of detail that does not show up in the result but tells you something about how tight this match actually was.

Leganés Responded With Character

When you go from 2-0 up to 2-2, the test of a team is what they do next. Do they crumble. Do they chase the game recklessly and leave gaps. Or do they compete and find a way. Leganés found a way.

Ismaël Gharbi scored in the 90th minute, finishing with his right foot after being assisted by Suleiman El Haddadi Mohamed, who had only been on the pitch since the 80th minute. That is a substitute making an immediate impact when his team needed it most. That is desire. That is accountability from a player who came off the bench and delivered.

Leganés finished the match with 12 shots on target. Their goalkeeper made five saves. Their team kept competing, kept creating, and when the moment arrived, someone stepped up. You cannot ask for more than that.

Discipline Was A Problem For Both Sides

This match had an edge to it. Owen Emeka picked up a yellow card for Granada in the sixth minute for a foul, and their manager Rubén Albés was booked in the same minute for unsportsmanlike conduct. He was then carded again at 78 minutes for an argument. That is a manager who was wound up from the very start and never fully settled himself down.

Leganés were not blameless. Zico Buurmeester was booked on 29 minutes, and Marvelous Antolín Garzón picked up a card on 85 minutes for fouling. Granada finished the match with four yellow cards. Leganés had two. That volume of cards tells you both sides were at it. It was a match played with intensity, which I respect, but discipline is a basic you cannot afford to lose.

What The Numbers Tell You

Both teams had 21 shots total. Both created three big chances. Both missed two big chances. In those headline numbers, this was a remarkably even match. But Leganés put 12 shots on target to Granada's six. That is where the game was won. When you get your chances, you have to be clinical. Leganés were. Granada's goalkeeper was excellent but he was being asked to do too much.

Granada had more possession, more passes, more tackles and more crosses. They controlled large portions of this match without controlling the scoreboard. That is a lesson in accountability. Dominating statistics is worthless if you do not put the ball in the net consistently. You have to execute the basics when the opportunity is there. Granada did not do that often enough.

Leganés's Recent Form In Context

Going into this match, Leganés had won two, drawn two and lost one across their last five completed La Liga 2 fixtures. Scoring goals had not been easy for them. They had scored just three times in those five matches, with a clean sheet rate of 60 per cent. Their defensive structure has generally been solid. The challenge was adding goals, and tonight they found three of them.

Granada arrived with two wins, two draws and one loss from their last five La Liga 2 outings, but had shipped five goals in that spell. Their defensive vulnerabilities were there to be exploited, and Leganés exploited them early and decisively.

The Verdict

This was a proper football match. It had drama, fight, quality moments and a result that was earned rather than handed to Leganés. They scored early, gave a goal back cheaply, were pegged back at 2-2, and then found a winner in stoppage time. That takes character. That takes a group of players who refused to accept a draw when a win was still available.

Granada will be furious. They had the ball, they had the chances, and they walked away with nothing. Their manager was booked twice and their goalkeeper was their best performer. That combination rarely produces points. They need to look at their attitude in front of goal and their discipline across the ninety minutes. Both need to improve sharply.

Leganés take three points. That is the only number that counts.