After a week when congratulations were in order for presenter/actor Warwick Davis on finally getting his BAFTA Fellowship award – after many years of coming up short! – Real Mallorca, like most sides these days, seem to have got over a serious wobble which they’ve had from the start of this year. This ended on Sunday when they played their best game in weeks beating Las Palmas 3-1. It’s put them in a good place as they take on Sevilla on Monday night, kick off in the intimidating Estadio Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan is 9pm. Los Nervionses are not the team they were a couple of years ago but they’re still a formidable outfit at home and a draw for us would be a good result. The match is live on IB3 TV.
Last Sunday’s win against a poor Las Palmas side was a massive momentum boost for the coach Jagoba Arrasate and his squad. Neither home nor away have Mallorca won a game by more than a one-goal difference since June 2023 in La Liga, when we beat Rayo Vallecano with three second-half strikers. Our last two home games before Las Palmas, against Real Betis and Osasuna, saw us drop points deep into stoppage time described by one local journalist as “Son Moix, the stadium of poisoned endings!” Having a three-goal cushion at half-time against the Canary Islanders was more than enough for Mallorca to hold on (despite a nervy second half) and get all three points for the first time since before Christmas. Sunday night’s win sees Mallorca on 34 points with 14 games left (six at home and eight away). It was quite remarkable the difference in the performance of the Palma side, granted against weakened opponents, but as the saying goes “We can only play what’s in front of us.”
So, why the transformation? Basque coach Arrasate successfully returned to his tried and tested 4-3-3 playing system which brought us such good results at the start of the season. Against Las Palmas winning was obligatory to avoid us tumbling down the table even further into the pit of misery that has given us six weeks of doom and gloom. The coach has always said he wanted to play with proper wingers and on Sunday we had the best 30 minutes of football this season in the first half. There wasn’t a weakness in the starting XI but a special mention must be made for several players.
First up is Robert Navarro, a regular in the Spanish Under 23 side, down the right flank. This guy is a class act and at last started a game instead of coming off the bench. Unfortunately it appears he’s signed a pre-contract agreement with Athletic Club (Bilbao) for next season. It would be nice if we could do a deal to get him instead but that looks unlikely.
On the other flank was our Japanese player Takuma Asano. He was injured last September, meaning his appearances have been few and far between. He was terrific on Sunday, scampering all over the place and his speed and trickery was a constant problem for the visiting defence. He was so effective that Spain’s biggest selling newspaper MARCA gave him three stars and put him in their team of match day 24. One local reporter gave Asano a measly one star – god only knows what game he was watching! He thoroughly deserved his standing ovation when he came off near the end.
The biggest smile of the evening, both during and after the game, was on the face of our Kosovan striker Vedat Muriqi. “El Pirata” was back to his best, scoring two and hitting the post which denied him what would have been a thoroughly deserved hat-trick. The reason he regained that missing spark was that at last he was getting the supply of ammunition he deserves, especially crosses from Dani Rodriguez. Muriqi and Rodriguez get on like a house on fire. They are Real Mallorca’s current golden duo. For the third time this season, a “worldy” cross from Dani found Muriqi’s head and he despatched a bullet header into the net.
The numbers that Dani Rodriguez has in La Liga are impressive. He has four goals and five assists making him the squad player who has contributed the most times to scoring goals. He’s turned back the clock and plays like a 26-year-old, not as he is, 36. He rounded off a great game on Sunday by volleying in the third goal.
Samu Costa during a training session.
Sergi Darder has had his best game for a long time last weekend. The absence of Samu Costa made it possible for Sergi to fit into the position he loves to play in, just behind the striker with space in the wide areas where he can give and receive the ball. Some of his defence-splitting passes were a joy to behold. In the scheme of things he was our metronome and was much more involved in build-ups than usual. It remains to be seen when Costa’s back in the side where Sergi Darder’s going to play.
One player who’s a bit of an unsung hero at Real Mallorca is 32-year-old Omar Mascarell. This guy who’s played for Real Madrid, Derby County, Eintracht Frankfurt and Schalke 04 had a great game last Sunday and has been described as being the lungs of the team and a key player in our defensive set-up, as he fights tooth and nail for every ball.
AND FINALLY, one day while out jogging a middle-aged man noticed two brand new tennis balls lying by the side of the road. He picked them up, put them in his pocket and carried on jogging. Waiting at traffic lights he noticed an attractive young lady standing next to him smiling, who asked him “What are those big bulges in your running shorts?” “Tennis balls,” he replied. “Wow,” said the young lady, “that must really hurt. I had tennis elbow last Summer and the pain was unbearable!”
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