What a strange creature a local derby is, anything can happen and all reason goes out the window. CD Tenerife captain Suso wont argue with the bizarre nature of a 1-1 draw at arch enemies UD Las Palmas, his 84th minute penalty strike squared the game and got him a booking for diving into the 1,500 wedge of travelling fans in Gran Canaria.

Both teams came into the fixture in poor form but Tenerife had the better of early play. Nano crashed a shot into the diving body of home goalie Raul after just 30 seconds. Las Palmas were keen to shoot from anywhere, Araujo headed over from some way out, and blasted a long strike over the bar. Malbasic got himself booked for a late tackle, earning him a top up suspension for Tenerife´s Friday night end to 2018. The Tenerife strikers must realise they are in danger of being discarded when the January transfer window opens, it didn´t show in their play, Nano produced a sloppy pass to Malbasic when something slicker was required, and the Serbian forward dithered when Carlos Ruiz found him with a better pass.

The Las Palmas goal was down to Camille, after 17 minutes the left back was beaten too easily by Fidel who set up Araujo for an simple finish. A quick response was needed, Nano, playing out on the right, put the ball across for Malbasic but his header was poor. Tenerife were struggling to make an impact and were getting caught up in some typically robust derby challenges. The best chance of levelling came late in the first half when a Bryan Acosta free kick veered off target. Carlos Ruiz showed some enterprise when he opened the second half with a long shot that just missed the post. The ref was a bit unpredictable, he gave Castro an undeserved free kick that Dani Hernandez tipped aside in style.
Raul Camara had to be replaced after 55 minutes after getting a knock in the mouth, Suso came on to bolster the attack as the back five became a four. Dani Hernandez denied Araujo again, and Camille made partial amends for his earlier error by heading out a dangerous home shot. Encouragement was on hand for Tenerife when Garcia handled the ball and was sent off for a second booking. Malbasic spurned another half chance and there was a delay as Nano was treated and then taken off after a heavy blow to the neck from Timor.

The previous week, the ref had denied Tenerife a clear penalty, with the arrival of VAR not due in the Second Division until next season, this weeks ref gifted Tenerife a penalty for a hand ball. It was a shocking mistake, if the defender had a hand where the ref said, he would be in a circus. After much arguing by the Las Palmas players and staff, Suso focused his mind and slotted the ball past the goalie. The captain´s reaction was all about his passion for his home island team, he was the first Tenerife born player to score in a derby game since 1989. The Nano injury and penalty row meant seven minutes of added time, Las Palmas feared it more than Tenerife. It could have been an away win, Acosta had an easy finish at the far post but skewed his shot wide just before the final whistle went. That still leaves Tenerife in 17th place and one point above the relegation zone.