Should Málaga CF have filed an appeal with the Disciplinary Committee over Carlos Dotor’s red card for stopping a promising attack from Gaspar Campos in the recent match against Sporting?
The dismissal means Dotor will miss the crucial upcoming clash against Ceuta at the Alfonso Murube Stadium—a significant loss. The match official, Sánchez López, noted in his report: “For bringing down an opponent, preventing a clear goal-scoring opportunity with his action.”
The incident raises questions. Luis Alberto Gutiérrez, a refereeing analyst on Canal Sur’s iconic program ‘Gol a gol,’ explained that the Málaga midfielder should not have been sent off because the foul occurred in Málaga’s own half of the field, not within the DOGSO zone.
What is the DOGSO zone? It’s an imaginary area of the pitch referees use to determine if a foul denies a clear goal-scoring opportunity. The acronym stands for Denying an Obvious Goal-Scoring Opportunity, a rule implemented in 2017 by the International Football Association Board (IFAB).
The DOGSO zone covers the space from the halfway point of the center circle to the penalty areas, bordered by perpendicular lines drawn from the corners of the big and small penalty areas, forming a hexagon. Within this zone, a foul that stops a clear attack can be considered a goal-scoring opportunity. Based on the footage, Dotor’s action appeared to occur outside this zone. Málaga could, in fact, have a valid case for an appeal.
Dotor’s Apology
Carlos Dotor voluntarily faced the media to publicly admit his mistake—a gesture that honors this true gentleman of La Rosaleda. “I often speak when things go well, but today I made a mistake I shouldn’t have. It was a quick action, and I want to apologize to the team and the fans. I thank the team. I’ll return to training and keep proving I want to play and contribute. In that action, which I could have avoided, we ended up with ten men. But we kept pushing and scored two great goals. I’m grateful to the team for their effort.”
Dotor felt supported by his teammates. “They came to cheer me up. I was with the physio thinking about things. They told me they would get the win, and they did. I want to thank them for their immense effort. It was a victory that made us all very happy—maybe a little more for me. The coach told me not to overthink it. I wanted to come out and speak to take responsibility for the error.”
In addition to Dotor, Diego Murillo will also miss the Ceuta match after receiving his tenth yellow card, completing his second suspension cycle. Furthermore, Larrubia and Joaquín Muñoz are on four bookings and are one away from suspension. Chupe, Lobete, Rafita, and Puga (the latter on his second cycle) have three yellow cards each. It’s worth noting that yellow cards are wiped for the playoffs, but if a player receives a fifth yellow in the final regular-season match, they serve a suspension in the first playoff game. In playoff matches, two yellow cards lead to a ban.