Cartagena vs Leganes

A place in the Copa del Rey Round of 16 is on the line as Cartagena and Leganes lock horns at the Estadio Municipal Cartagonova.

Cartagena’s sternest test in this season’s Copa del Rey pits them against Leganes, a side they failed to score against in both H2Hs in last year’s La Liga 2 campaign (D1, L1). Scoring remains an issue for the home team, as evidenced by a brace of narrow 1-0 triumphs against lower-league Beasain and Andorra on their way to the round of 32. Reasons for optimism are few and far between, considering Jandro Castro’s men had suffered back-to-back 4-1 defeats toward the end of the previous calendar year before drawing 0-0 against Albacete. That was Cartagena’s eighth failed attempt to claim three points in ten home matches this season (W2, D2, L6). Furthermore, they couldn’t score more than one goal on each occasion!

Despite facing below-par opposition in the opening two Copa del Rey rounds, Leganes have reached this stage by the skin of their teeth. After a dramatic 2-1 triumph against Ciudad de Lucena, they needed penalties to overcome fourth-tier Estepona last time out (2-2). They’ve since alternated between losing (2) and winning (1) in three La Liga fixtures, with both defeats in that run yielding a humiliating three-goal margin. If it’s any consolation, Borja Jimenez’s men have avoided defeat in four of their last five away games in all competitions (W3, D1), with three of them featuring over 2.5 goals and both teams on the scoresheet. Leganes’ most recent road trip produced a shocking result as they stunned Barcelona 1-0, setting themselves up nicely for this one-off tie.