Atlètic Lleida won a remarkable Copa Federacion semi-final 9-8 on penalties after a 3-3 draw over 120 minutes, but the match was defined not by dominance in open play but by a chaotic second-half flurry of goals and the subsequent composure from the spot. The Lemeister model had shaded Ourense CF as slight favourites at 35 per cent to Atlètic Lleida's 32 per cent, with a draw rated at 33 per cent, yet the hosts found a way through a shoot-out that required all five pairs of takers and sudden death.
The first 45 minutes produced no goals. Ourense broke the deadlock a minute into the second half, A. Bouzaig scoring in the 46th minute. The lead lasted only seven minutes before B. Garros equalised for Atlètic Lleida in the 53rd minute. Garros then struck again in the 62nd minute to put the home side ahead. Ourense responded with two quick goals of their own. J. Ramos drew level in the 65th minute, and O. Ouhdadi put the visitors back in front in the 68th minute. The scoring in normal time ended there, with Ourense holding a 3-2 lead. The five goals across a 22-minute second-half spell represented the entire open-play output of the match, indicating both sides found defensive vulnerability after a cagey opening period.
Extra time did not bring the same intensity of open-play chances, but Atlètic Lleida forced a 3-3 equaliser in the 97th minute through C. Mas, sending the tie to a penalty shoot-out. F. Carmona received a yellow card for Ourense in the 107th minute and was then dismissed with a second yellow moments later, leaving the visitors a man down for the final 13 minutes of extra time. Ourense defended the numerical disadvantage resolutely, however, as no further goals followed despite the extra space for Atlètic Lleida.
The shoot-out went to sudden death. Every taker scored through the first five rounds. O. Ouhdadi, N. Castillo, A. Perez, H. Sanz and J. Ramos all converted for Ourense, while A. Santana, A. Ortiz, N. Sauret and B. Garros kept Atlètic Lleida level. With the scores tied after 10 penalties, the shoot-out continued into sudden death. The decisive miss came from an Ourense player in the 125th minute, allowing Atlètic Lleida to prevail. All 15 penalties attempted were scored during the first five rounds and into the sixth, reflecting exceptional technique under pressure from both sets of takers.
Without match rating data, the standout individual contribution came from B. Garros, who scored twice in open play and added a penalty in the shoot-out. J. Ramos and O. Ouhdadi each scored once in normal time for Ourense, with Ouhdadi also converting in the shoot-out. A. Bouzaig opened the scoring for the visitors, while C. Mas forced extra time with his 97th-minute equaliser. The expulsion of F. Carmona gave Ourense a numerical disadvantage for the closing stages of extra time, but the statistics do not suggest that created a sustained period of pressure for the home side.
The result means Atlètic Lleida advance to the final of the Copa Federacion, having survived a high-scoring contest that statistically was a close contest from the outset. Ourense CF, who were marginal favourites by the Lemeister model, will reflect on a run of three goals in nine second-half minutes that was not enough to see them through. The semi-final ended with no statistical data available to analyse possession, chances created or expected goals, leaving the narrative anchored solely in the timing of goals and the eventual penalty shoot-out outcome.
