Fulham refuse to participate in penalty shoot-out after Alvaro Arbeloa red card

Fulham's penultimate pre-season friendly before the new Premier League season ended with their manager sent off and their players loudly booed.

The Cottagers took on newly-promoted La Liga side Malaga Rosaleda stadium in a match where the Costa del Sol Trophy was up for grabs.

The game finished 2-2, with both Alex Iwobi and Ryan Sessegnon on target for Fulham. Eneko Jauregi scored a late equaliser from the spot for the hosts following a controversial handball decision against Calvin Bassey.

New Fulham boss Alvaro Arbeloa was absolutely livid and ended up being sent off for his protests to the referee at the final whistle.

That wasn't the end of the chaos, however. As is common in a number of friendlies with trophies on the line these days, a penalty shoot-out looked to be in order after the draw.

However, Fulham refused to participate as they claim it was not in the contract for penalties to take place.

The West London outfit also had a flight to catch and risked missing it if they were involved in the penalties.

The team quickly exited the pitch to loud boos from the 17,000 fans in attendance. Malaga were declared champions on the 36th edition of the trophy as a result of the forfeit.

Malaga players decided to make light of the situation, with Jauregi lining up and taking a penalty in empty net - his teammates mobbing him as fans celebrated.

The Andalusian side then lifted the trophy and posed for pictures. With the incredible confusion, Fulham put out an official statement on their X account where they said both teams had agreed that no shoot-out was to take place.

The club commented: "Thank you for your excellent support in Malaga this evening! We can confirm that prior to the match, both teams agreed that there would not be a penalty shootout in the event of a draw."

Malaga also weighed in the drama on their official website as they gave a very different review.

The La Liga club wrote: "Although a penalty shootout had been scheduled, Fulham left the pitch, claiming that a shootout had not been included in the contract. Málaga CF were therefore crowned champions of the XXXVI Costa del Sol Cervezas Victoria Cup."

Fulham take on Bundesliga side VFB Stuttgart in a friendly at Craven Cottage on Saturday before they kick off the new Premier League campaign with a derby clash against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Monday 24 August.

It's been a summer of change for Fulham following the departure of Marco Silva, with the likes of Harry Wilson, Issa Diop and Sasa Lukic also moving on.

In terms of incomings, Arbeloa has brought in two talented young players from former club Real Madrid in the form of striker Gonzalo Garcia and Cesar Palacios, as well as securing the signing of Shea Charles from Southampton for a fee of £30 million.

He has become the most expensive Northern Irish footballer of all time after penning a five-year deal.