THEY say in Spain that facing Getafe is like a trip to the dentist.

And that will please nobody more than their controversial manager Jose Bordalas.

For eight years, across two spells at the Madrid club, Bordalas has worked miracles on a shoestring budget, nurturing teams everybody hates to play.

Not by transforming his run-of-the-mill LaLiga players into world beaters, but by coaching them to suffocate, contain and frustrate.

There is no tiki-taka or total football from a Bordalas team. His philosophy is built on the dark arts.

And Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler may wish he was in the dentist’s chair after 90 minutes of trying to outwit the wily 62-year-old in the Conference League on Thursday night.

Facing the Seagulls has been like pulling teeth for many this season.

Arsenal and Manchester City have each come out on the losing side against them, while Coventry and Crystal Palace were battered 5-0.

Hurzeler’s men have mastered calculated risk-taking and high-intensity attacking, becoming the team everybody loves to watch and admire.

The same cannot be said of Bordalas’ Getafe.

Ex-Barcelona boss Quique Setien once said Bordalas’ style of play made his “blood boil”.

Xavi claimed it is “not the kind of football normal people want to watch”.

And it is no wonder rival bosses get so worked up.

Throughout Bordalas’ reign, Getafe have consistently ranked among the highest teams in Europe for fouls per match, yellow cards and reds.

Most sides in top European leagues average between two and four dismissals per season.

Getafe are already up to FIVE, and the LaLiga campaign is not even a third of the way complete.

Another red – making it six in total came in their Conference League play-off against Partizan in August.

But as is typical with a Bordalas side, even when they went a man down, they found a way to adapt, scoring twice with a one-man disadvantage and winning the first leg 3-1.

Getafe fought back from a goal down against Rayo Vallecano last month after Djene was sent off in the 28th minute, and clung on for a point against Celta Vigo when Zaid Romero was given his marching orders in September.

Getafe are consistently among the lowest-ranked teams in Europe for the average time the ball is in play during their matches.

Their games are stop-start, they stay compact at the back, defend with a high line, catch opponents offside and go direct when they attack.

These are the tactics that allow Getafe to punch above their weight and prevent opponents from playing their best football – as Hurzeler’s slick, trendy Brighton outfit could discover this week.

Bordalas is unapologetic about his gritty playing style – and the Getafe fans love him for it.

And why wouldn’t they, when he has twice led them to European football with one of the smallest budgets in Spain’s top flight?

This is not a manager whose football will win beauty contests, but it is one who has mastered his craft – one learned during a journeyman career which has spanned more than three decades and taken in lower-league spells at Benidorm and Alicante.

His players are subjected to gruelling three-hour sessions, put on the scales each morning and forced to train with extra weight strapped to them if they have let their diet slip.

Bordalas grew up with nine siblings and picked melons to earn money as a kid. There are no frills where he is concerned.

And while his pragmatic style has irked the Barcelona pass merchants, he has admirers in Diego Simeone, Carlo Ancelotti and Zinedine Zidane.

When all is said and done on Thursday, Hurzeler may offer up the same begrudging respect.