Malaga CF clinch victory in an evenly contested LaLiga World Carranza Trophy final

Malaga CF won the 62nd edition of the Ramon de Carranza Trophy, capturing the title for the first time in their history after beating Cadiz CF 2-1 in an exciting final with emotions running high until the final whistle. 

Juande Ramos's side took the lead after the break through a Charles penalty. Youth player Youssef En-Nesyri doubled the advantage when he tucked home a Juankar cross just a few minutes later, but Cadiz did not give up the ghost. The hosts managed to cut the arrears in the final stages through Aitor, although it would prove not to be enough to force a penalty shoot-out. 

The Player of the Tournament was Malaga's Venezuelan star Juanpi, who racked up three assists in the first fixture. The midfielder stated that playing in LaLiga "is a dream" and "every boy's wish" on being presented with the trophy by Antonio Barradas, LaLiga's country manager for South Africa. 

FULL TIME | @Cadiz_CF 1-2 @MalagaCF_en

Malaga crowned 2016 Carranza Trophy champions. #LaLigaWorld pic.twitter.com/L9aJFUzjfJ

— LaLiga (@LaLigaEN) August 13, 2016

Before Malaga got their hands on the trophy, Atletico Madrid and the Nigeria All-Stars, a team made up of leading players from the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL), battled it out for third place. Although Los Rojiblancos took control of the contest through Nicolas Gaitan's first-half strike, the African outfit kept plugging away and eventually equalised through Abdulrahman Bashir with just a few minutes left on the clock. 

Diego Simeone's troops had to call on their wealth of experience against a very physical Nigeria All-Stars lineup and it eventually told with Diego Godin grabbing an 89th-minute winner. The Uruguayan offered a very positive assessment of the Nigerian side's contribution to a tournament staged under the LaLiga World programme. "It's a way to make LaLiga grow and for everyone to integrate themselves." 

Mutiu Adepoju, LaLiga's sub-director for Nigeria, also stressed the importance of the tournament and the impact the NPFL's participation has had on Nigerian football. "It really benefits the players and people of Nigeria. We're very grateful," stated Mutiu.