Oviedo took all three points from Albacete in the third round of the Segunda División, winning 1-0 at the Carlos Belmonte on Saturday evening. P. Saenz put the visitors ahead in the forty-second minute, and that was enough to carry the side through a match where the hosts dominated possession but had nothing to lose.
The goal came from a rare moment of clarity. Albacete pushed forward, offered the ball into the box, and Saenz found space to finish. By then the hosts had already shown they could keep the ball — sixty-three per cent of possession, one hundred and seven attacks — but the chance creation was thin. Only one big chance for the home side, and it did not materialise.
Oviedo, with thirty-seven per cent of the ball, were more efficient. They registered two goalkeeper saves and five shots on target, including the decisive strike. Their expected goals figure of 0.76 sat above Albacete's 0.53, a reminder that quality of chances matters more than volume.
The yellow cards piled up without changing the shape of the game. Youness Lachhab, Lluís López, Samu Rodríguez, Agustin Medina, Carlos Domínguez and Alex Rubio all saw the referee's hand. It was a match decided in the middle third, where one mistake ends it and the rest is noise.
Albacete remain bottom of the table with zero points from three games. Oviedo move up to tenth place on four points. The gap between them is now four, and for the hosts there is still work to do before the margin becomes comfortable.