Athletic Bilbao and Malaga were forced to settle for a point each following a goalless draw in La Liga this evening, despite the hosts being reduced to 10 men in the first half.
Malaga started the game brightly and they might have grabbed an early lead, but for Bilbao keeper Gorka Iraizoz, who charged off his line to cut out an enticing through-ball from the visitors.
The chances of the home side producing a victory took a blow just 19 minutes into the fixture, as midfielder San Jose was given a straight red card for his challenge on Charles.
The disadvantage did not seem to be impacting too much on the hosts' forward play, however, given that they went close through Markel Susaeta, whose strong shot was saved by Malaga keeper Carlos Kameni.
The home side continued to push forward after the interval, and they came close to breaking the deadlock thanks to Oscar de Marcos, but he could not find a way past Kameni, who parried his effort wide to keep the scores level.
Malaga failed to offer much in the final third, but they were able to cling on until the death in order to earn a hard-fought point against a dominant Bilbao side.
Christopher Dodd
