Las Palmas hopes to continue their rich vein of form as they welcome Mallorca in what is expected to be a very important La Liga clash this Saturday night. Diego Martinez’s side will attempt to make it a fifth win in six games, while Mallorca attempts to get back on their feet after two back-to-back defeats that have somewhat ruined their promising start to the season.
Match Preview: Las Palmas vs. Mallorca
Diego Martinez Rejuvenates Las Palmas
Las Palmas have turned around their season remarkably after Diego Martinez took over as coach in the month of October, with four wins in their last five games in all competitions. Martinez replaced Luis Carrion and quickly reversed the fortunes of a team that had been manoeuvring in the places near the relegation zone.
Key wins against Valencia, Girona, and Rayo Vallecano in La Liga, along with a thumping 7-0 Copa del Rey victory against Ontinena, merely underlines their resurgence. Despite sitting 16th in the table with 12 points from 13 games, Las Palmas is now two points clear of the relegation zone. Central to their success are the tactical adjustments made by the new coach, coupled with the improvement in team morale.
Mallorca’s Struggles After a Strong Start
Under Jagoba Arrasate, Mallorca are lying ninth with 18 points after their promising start to the season. Back-to-back losses in recent weeks against Alaves and Atletico Madrid have somewhat stopped the momentum. Having collected only one point in their last three matches, the team will be eager to reignite their form and keep their European qualification hopes alive.
The Pirates have been resilient on the road, with the sixth-best away record in La Liga this season at nine points from six games, and happy memories of the last meeting with Las Palmas, which they won 1-0 towards the end of last season.
Form Comparison
Las Palmas La Liga Form: LLWWLW
Las Palmas (All Competitions): LWWWLW
Mallorca La Liga Form: WLWDLL
Team News and Predicted Lineups
Las Palmas Team News:
Marvin Park, Adnan Januzaj and Enzo Loiodice will be monitored by Diego Martinez this Saturday. Manu Fuster, who scored as a substitute in their last outing could displace one of the starting XI in attack. Otherwise, Martinez may retain the same players that did duty in the impressive win over Rayo Vallecano.
Predicted Las Palmas Starting XI:
Cillessen; Rozada, Suarez, McKenna, A. Munoz; J. Munoz, K. Rodriguez, Essugo; Fuster, Silva, Moleiro
Mallorca Team Updates:
Injuries will rule out Pablo Maffeo, Abdon Prats, Toni Lato, and Valery from the match-day squad of Mallorca. Ivan Cuellar and Takuma Asano are, however, in doubt. Following their defeat against Atletico Madrid, Dani Rodriguez and Antonio Sanchez might be brought back into the starting XI. Vedat Muriqi and Cyle Larin, who have only scored three La Liga goals this season, look to end their scoring drought.
Predicted Mallorca Starting XI:
Greif; Sanchez, Valjent, Raillo, Mojica; D. Rodriguez, Morlanes, Costa, Darder; Larin, Muriqi
Match Prediction
Las Palmas 1-1 Mallorca
The reverse fixture last season ended in a 1-1 draw and we predict the same score line this weekend. Las Palmas have the momentum in recent weeks but Mallorca’s decent form on the road could see them hold on to an important point.
