Fresh from booking their spot in the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey, Mallorca will resume their La Liga campaign with a clash against Real Betis on Saturday night.
Mallorca beat La Liga leaders Girona 3-2 in the quarter-finals of the Copa del Rey on Wednesday evening, while Real Betis will enter the match off the back of a 4-2 loss to Barcelona in the league.
Match preview
© Reuters
Mallorca were certainly the underdogs entering Wednesday's Copa del Rey quarter-final with a team that has hardly missed a step this season, but Javier Aguirre's side were 3-0 ahead inside 35 minutes on home soil and resisted a late comeback from Girona to record a 3-2 success.
The Pirates therefore have a Copa del Rey semi-final to look forward to, but they cannot afford to take their eye off the ball in La Liga, with the team currently down in 15th position in the table.
Aguirre's side finished ninth in Spain's top flight last term, but they have struggled for consistency this season, only winning three of their 21 matches in the competition, drawing a league-high 11 times.
Mallorca are only five points ahead of the relegation zone, but they are also just three points off 12th-placed Alaves and will bring a five-game unbeaten run into this weekend's league affair.
The Pirates, who drew 1-1 with Villarreal in the league last time out, have only lost one of their 10 La Liga games in front of their own supporters this season, meanwhile, and they will be welcoming a Real Betis outfit that have won just once on their travels in 2023-24.
© Reuters
Real Betis are another team to have underperformed in La Liga this season, with Manuel Pellegrini's side only picking up 31 points from their 21 matches, which has left them in ninth position in the table.
The Seville outfit managed to beat Granada 1-0 in their last league game in front of their own fans but that proved to be their first La Liga success since the end of November.
The Green and Whites will enter this match off the back of a 4-2 defeat at home to Barcelona, with the result seeing them lose more ground in the race to secure a top-six position.
Real Betis are only four points behind sixth-placed Real Sociedad, though, and they are still active in Europe, preparing to take on Dinamo Zagreb in the Europa Conference League knockout round playoffs, with the first leg of their contest taking place in Seville on February 15.
El Glorioso are bidding to make it five straight La Liga wins over Mallorca this weekend, and they recorded a 2-0 victory when the two teams locked horns for the reverse fixture in November 2023.
Team News
© Reuters
Mallorca will again be without the services of Pablo Maffeo due to a knee injury, but the home side are otherwise in excellent shape heading into this match.
Giovanni Gonzalez was suspended against Villarreal in La Liga last time out, but he played the full 90 minutes against Girona in the Copa del Rey and will start again here.
Abdon Prats could find himself back on the bench despite scoring twice against Girona in the Copa del Rey, with Cyle Larin likely to lead the line, and there will be changes from the side that started the cup fixture, with Samu Costa, Toni Lato, Sergi Darder and Manu Morlanes among those set to return.
As for Real Betis, Aitor Ruibal, Ayoze Perez, Juan Miranda, Guido Rodriguez, Claudio Bravo and Marc Bartra are unavailable for selection due to injury.
Meanwhile, Chadi Riad, Youssouf Sabaly and Abde Ezzalzouli are still involved in the Africa Cup of Nations.
Head coach Pellegrini is unlikely to make many changes from the side that took to the field for the first whistle against Barcelona, but Nabil Fekir could come into an attacking position.
Isco netted a brace against Barcelona and should again operate behind Willian Jose, with talented youngster Assane Diao potentially keeping his spot down the left.
Mallorca possible starting lineup:
Greif; Gonzalez, Valjent, Raillo, Nastasic, Lato; Darder, Morlanes, Costa, D Rodriguez; Larin
Real Betis possible starting lineup:
Silva; Bellerin, Pezzella, Papastathopoulos, Abner; Cardoso, Roca; Fekir, Isco, Diao; Willian Jose
We say: Mallorca 1-1 Real Betis
Mallorca have drawn 11 of their 21 league matches this season and are difficult to beat despite their lowly position in the table. Real Betis are missing a number of important players, meanwhile, so we are struggling to back either with any confidence and have therefore ultimately settled on a low-scoring draw.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Matt Law
