CD Estepona Seeks a Response in Puente Genil After the Setback

Some losses hurt.

And some losses force you to face the music.

CD Estepona heads into its first road game of the season after suffering a blow no one saw coming.

A 1-4 loss to Linares.

A score that was far too lopsided given what happened for much of that first half.

But a result that also made one thing clear.

In Segunda Federación, it’s not enough to play well for just a little while.

You have to sustain it.

You have to compete when the game shifts.

And you have to know how to react when the opponent strikes.

Tomorrow, Estepona will have its first chance to do just that.

7:00 p.m.

Manuel Polinario.

Puente Genil.

Matchday 3.

First away game.

And facing them is a Salerm Puente Genil team that isn’t exactly in perfect shape either.

They come in with three points.

With five goals scored.

With two goals conceded.

And with a last-minute loss in their visit to the Nuevo Colombino.

Soccer has already begun to teach its first lessons.

Now it’s time to learn.

The 1–4 Score Doesn’t Tell the Whole Story

The result against Linares was decisive.

There’s no arguing that.

But the match had two completely different sides.

Estepona was the better team for much of the first half.

They pressed.

They dominated.

They created chances.

And they took the lead in the 33rd minute with a goal by Maxi Benites off an assist from David Ballarín.

Up to that point, the match seemed to mirror what the team had shown a week earlier against Xerez.

A recognizable team.

A team that wanted to take control.

A team that wanted to play.

But then came the blow.

Linares tied the game in the 41st minute.

And four minutes later, they scored again.

1–2.

Two plays.

Two blows.

And a game that changed before halftime.

Then came David Velázquez’s goal to make it 1-3.

And Menudo’s goal to make it 1-4 in stoppage time.

The final score ended up being much more decisive than the feel of the first 45 minutes.

But that’s precisely why this loss raises a question more important than the score itself:

How does this Estepona team respond when things go wrong?

We’ll start to find the answer tomorrow.

The first road trip comes at just the right time

Because the schedule doesn’t wait either.

After two matches at the Muñoz Pérez, Estepona is on the road for the first time.

And they’re facing two consecutive away games.

First, Puente Genil.

Then Tenerife B.

Two away games.

Two different venues.

And a first opportunity to see if what happened against Linares was a one-off setback or the first warning sign of a season that’s going to demand much more than what we saw in the season opener.

Manolo Sánchez’s team has one point after the first two matchdays.

A draw against Xerez.

A loss to Linares.

One goal scored.

Four goals conceded.

The numbers are still too small to draw conclusions.

But they’re enough to understand one thing:

now is the time to react.

There’s no need to change everything.

We need to make adjustments.

Because the approach that was evident against Xerez and for much of the match against Linares is still there.

Pressure.

Intensity.

Attacking play.

But the Second Federation also demands something else.

Emotional control.

And the ability to weather tough moments.

And Puente Genil already knows how to give Estepona a hard time

They’re not a new opponent.

Far from it.

In fact, there’s a bit of a score to settle.

Last season, the two teams faced off twice.

And Puente Genil won both times.

The first was in December.

Right here at Muñoz Pérez.

Estepona took the lead with a penalty kick converted by Roi Tato in the 16th minute.

It seemed like that afternoon might have started differently.

But Alan Araiza tied the game before halftime.

And just when the match seemed headed for a draw, Tommy Montenegro appeared in the 90th minute to make it 1–2.

A knockout blow.

And three points for Puente Genil.

Three months later, in March, it happened again.

This time at the Manuel Polinario Stadium.

1-0.

A tight game.

A game with few openings.

And another victory for Puente Genil.

The recent record, therefore, does not favor Estepona.

Two matches.

Two losses.

One goal scored.

Three goals conceded.

But there’s also an important difference.

That Estepona team was a different one.

And this Puente Genil team is, too.

An opponent that has returned to the Second Division due to a very unique story

Because the story behind the Puente Genil team deserves to be told.

Salerm Puente Genil earned promotion to the Second Federation in May 2025 after winning the Third Federation Group X title.

Last season, however, they were unable to stay in the division.

They ended up being relegated.

And over the summer, a second chance arose.

The vacancy left in the division allowed the club to regain its spot in the Second Federation.

So Puente Genil is back where it wanted to be.

And it’s doing so with obvious motivation.

It doesn’t want this second chance to be just that.

It wants to turn it into long-term stability.

Or even something more.

And the start of the season shows that it hasn’t come just to participate.

Four Goals to Start

The season opener was a statement of intent.

A 4-0 win over Mijas-Las Lagunas.

And it wasn’t a rout that came together at the last minute.

The match was practically decided before halftime.

Alan Araiza opened the scoring.

Juan María scored the second.

And he popped up again to score the third.

Salva Vegas then sealed the rout in the second half.

Migue García’s team was superior.

They had firepower.

They found open spaces.

And they converted their chances.

The result made Puente Genil one of the standout teams of the first matchday.

But then came Matchday 2.

And the scenario changed completely.

From 4-0 to a Comeback at the Nuevo Colombino

Puente Genil traveled to Huelva.

And there, they faced a whole different game.

Recreativo dominated for much of the first half.

Aitor García put the Decano ahead.

The Puente Genil team struggled to build plays for a few minutes.

But then things changed.

And drastically so.

After halftime, Puente Genil came into their own.

They competed.

They tied the game.

And for many minutes, they put Recreativo on the back foot.

The 1-1 equalizer came courtesy of Antonio Pajuelo.

And the match seemed headed for a draw.

Until Ale Marín stepped up.

89th minute.

2–1.

Defeat.

But not a rout.

No loss of focus.

No surrender.

Puente Genil fell.

But they made it clear that they also know how to compete when the match calls for a different approach.

And that’s precisely what Estepona will have to watch out for.

Migue García and an approach that’s already gaining recognition

The home team’s bench will be led by Migue García, accompanied by Joaquín García.

And there’s an interesting detail.

Migue knows the club inside and out.

As a player, he was one of the key figures in Puente Genil’s promotion in 2025.

Now he faces another challenge from the bench.

The club’s decision to bring in both coaches also has an element of identity.

They are two men who know the club inside and out.

Two people who have already experienced Polinario soccer from the inside.

And who are now trying to build it from the bench.

Migue García already made clear during his introduction the vision he has for his team:

a courageous Salerm.

A team that goes out to win.

A team that wants to dominate.

Among the names that have already taken center stage are Javi Luengo in goal, Alan Araiza, Salva Vegas, Juan Rosa, Polaco, Manu Viana, Loren Bianco, and Tommy Montenegro.

And there’s one who’s already made his mark.

Juan María.

Two goals on the first matchday.

Power.

Finishing.

Ability to exploit open spaces.

And a performance that made him one of the standout players in that rout of Mijas.

He won’t be the only problem.

But he is certainly one of the players Estepona will have to keep in check.

Puente Genil Is Not Invincible

And this is probably the most important part.

Because the opponent comes in with a strong case.

But also with weaknesses.

They’ve conceded two goals in two matchdays.

They lost in Huelva.

And during the first half against Recreativo, they struggled to build clearly from the back.

Estepona, therefore, doesn’t need to come up with a different game plan.

They need to get back to some of the things they’ve already shown they can do.

Press high.

Force the opponent to move.

Find the open spaces.

And, above all, stay focused when the game shifts.

Because Puente Genil has shown it can be dangerous.

But it has also shown it can struggle.

And that will be one of the keys to this afternoon’s match.

The Comeback Begins Away from Muñoz Pérez

There’s something symbolic about this match.

The first road trip comes after the first loss.

Not after a win.

Not after a winning streak.

After a setback.

And that changes the landscape.

At home, Muñoz Pérez pushes forward.

The atmosphere helps.

The crowd gets behind the team.

Away, all that disappears.

What remains is the team.

The players.

The game plan.

The focus.

The character.

And maybe that’s why this game has a different significance.

Because it’s not just about picking up three points.

It’s about seeing what kind of Estepona emerges when the circumstances are no longer favorable.

The team doesn’t need to forget. It needs to learn.

The 1-4 loss is already a fact.

It can’t be erased.

Nor is there any need to do so.

Because bad games teach lessons, too.

Estepona now knows that dominating doesn’t always mean winning.

That taking the lead guarantees nothing.

That an opponent can turn a game around in five minutes.

And that a good first half is useless if the second half becomes a whole different story.

But they also know something else.

That they’ve got what it takes.

They showed it against Xerez.

They showed it against Linares.

Even in a 1–4 loss.

Now they need to turn that into consistency.

And consistency starts on the road.

Tomorrow is the time to respond

Some seasons start with a win.

Others start with doubts.

And others start by showing exactly what they’ll be like for many months to come:

good games.

Bad games.

Setbacks.

Comebacks.

And moments when you have to start over.

CD Estepona is at that point.

One point.

Two matchdays.

One loss.

An away game.

And an opponent coming in with three points and the fresh memory of having beaten Estepona twice last season.

But also with a loss in their last game.

With a team that’s still coming together.

And at a venue Estepona already knows well.

The Manuel Polinario.

7:00 p.m.

First away game.

First test on the road.

Tomorrow, there’s no need to promise anything.

We need to compete.

We need to make adjustments.

We need to go back to being that team that presses, plays on the attack, and doesn’t hide.

And, above all, we need to prove that one loss doesn’t change our path.

It puts us to the test.

Because that’s what soccer is all about, too.

Falling down.

Looking at the scoreboard.

Taking a breath.

And getting back up.

Tomorrow, CD Estepona plays again.

On the road.

After a 1-4 loss.

Against an opponent that already knows how to beat them.

And that’s precisely why…

tomorrow, another chapter of the story begins.