The meloneros have only won one game this year and the butchers arrive in Granada at the best time: with 4 consecutive victories
The Palacio de los Deportes de Granada is this week the epicenter of national futsal as the venue for the Spanish Cup, the competition that brings together the eight best teams in the country. The two representatives of the Region of Murcia, Jimbee Cartagena and ElPozo Murcia, will face each other in the Sudden Death match this Friday at 5.30pm.
Meloneros and delicacies are approaching the derby with very different feelings. The people of Cartagena arrive deflated: from battling for the lead of the regular season against Barcelona two months ago, to seventh place with just one win in 2023. And the Murcians, on top of the wave: eliminated in the Copa del Rey Up against in the Second Division, blushing in the Super Cup against Barcelona (7-2) and bottom of the league, Javi Rodríguez’s men have come back, are fourth and have won their last four games big.
In the draw for the quarterfinals, meloneros and delicacies were paired at the beginning of January. So favoritism was on Jimbee’s side and ElPozo had the Spanish Super Cup (7-2) wound open. For some time now, the roles have been reversed: Duda’s coming at a worse time and Javi Rodríguez’s at the best of a turbulent season.
ElPozo clung to recovering wins against Ribera Navarra (7-2), Antequera (0-3), Valdepeñas (3-4) and Noia (7-2), all in a row, to get off the ground. Also important is the return of Fernando to the parquet, with a goal, and Bruno Taffy’s good moment. Javi Rodríguez’s men also hold on to the gunpowder of Taynan (6), Rafa Santos (9), Marcel (10) and Gadeia (9), without forgetting Juanjo’s wall under the sticks.
The Spanish Cup is the shortest way for ElPozo to straighten out the course of the season and win another prestigious title. The bill remains zero since the 2017 Copa del Rey. And the Spanish Cup, which they won four times, has resisted since 2010. Especially painful was last year’s final against Barça on penalties. ElPozo needs to hold on to that big club aura this time around.
The finals are contested, including the most recent: the President’s Cup against Jimbee Cartagena (3-1). The melon team has taken the pulse of the derbies by winning the last three: May 23, 2022 (0-1), November 27, 2022 (2-1) and the one listed on January 17 in Lorca.
The project led by Miguel Ángel Jiménez Bosque has as its maximum level the semi-finals of the 2021 Spanish Cup. Futsal from Cartagena is already present in the major events, it is established in the Spanish Cup, in the quarter-finals of the Cup del Rey and appears among the top eight in the league. Duda’s next challenge is to take it one step further: be a contender to make it to the finals. The Brazilian, who won the Spanish Cup three times as coach of ElPozo (in 2003, 2008 and 2010), knows that punches make the difference. Your Jimbee has been missing that lately. Restoring that success will be vital in Granada.
Source: La Verdad
I am Shawn Partain, a journalist and content creator working for the Today Times Live. I specialize in sports journalism, writing articles that cover major sporting events and news stories. With a passion for storytelling and an eye for detail, I strive to be accurate and insightful in my work.
