Overview
- The pre‑season Costa del Sol Trophy at La Rosaleda finished 2-2 on Wednesday night and then broke down when Fulham refused to stay for a penalty shootout and walked off the pitch.
- Fulham manager Álvaro Arbeloa was shown a straight red card after protesting the late penalty that made the score 2-2 and his dismissal preceded the players’ withdrawal.
- Fulham says both clubs agreed beforehand that a shootout would not take place and pointed to the match agreement in a club statement.
- Málaga and the tournament organisers say a shootout had been scheduled, Málaga took spot‑kicks into an empty net and the hosts were subsequently declared winners.
- Video of the scenes went viral and reports about a tight return flight for Fulham circulated without formal confirmation from the club, leaving potential reputational and sporting consequences to be resolved by organisers and the clubs.