By Our Spanish Football Correspondent
PAMPLONA — Sevilla’s season of discontent reached a fever pitch at El Sadar on Sunday as a late, dramatic collapse saw them fall 2-1 to a resilient Osasuna, leaving the seven-time Europa League winners staring into the abyss of the relegation zone.
On a night where the stars of Pamplona outshone the fading lights of Seville, it was Alejandro Catena who emerged as the ultimate hero. The towering defender rose highest in the 98th minute to hammer home a header that sent the home faithful into a state of absolute delirium.
For much of the second half, it looked as though Neal Maupay would be the name in lights. The former Everton and Brighton man, a constant nuisance for the Osasuna backline, finally broke the deadlock in the 69th minute.
Connecting with a pinpoint cross from Djibril Sow, Maupay’s header was clinical, momentarily silencing the raucous El Sadar crowd and giving Sevilla a vital lifeline in their fight for survival.
However, Osasuna boss Vicente Moreno turned to his bench, and it was the introduction of Raul Garcia that flipped the script. Just nine minutes after Sevilla took the lead, Garcia proved why he remains one of the most dangerous instinctive finishers in the league.
After a period of relentless pressure, Garcia found space in the box to lash home a left-footed strike, beating Odysseas Vlachodimos at his bottom corner and shifting the momentum entirely back to the hosts.
As the clock ticked into the eighth minute of stoppage time, Sevilla’s tired legs finally gave way. Moi Gomez, whose creativity grew as the game aged, whipped in a tantalising delivery from a late corner. Catena, timing his run to perfection, bullied his way through a sea of white shirts to power the ball into the net.
”I have a knot in my throat,” a dejected Gabriel Suazo admitted after the whistle. “We have to put our lives on the line for this club. We have five finals left.”
The result leaves Sevilla 18th in the table, a point adrift of safety, while Osasuna continue their push for a top-half finish, powered by the late-game heroics of their veteran stars.
MATCH STATS
Osasuna 2 (Garcia 79′, Catena 98′)
Sevilla 1 (Maupay 69′)
Attendance: 19,627
Man of the Match: Alejandro Catena (Osasuna)
