Mallorca-Athletic

If you are a fan of La Liga and not necessarily either of these teams, this game on the surface seems like a boring game between teams who seem to be going nowhere and are setting themselves up for a relegation fight. I think most teams in La Liga fit this description. From 6th place Atletico down to Recreativo who sit in the final relegation spot, there is only a six point gap. Parity is alive in La Liga again this year.

With this parity, both of these teams need to start winning. What makes this game a little more interesting then the typical La Liga match involving medicore teams is the Aritz Aduriz angle of him facing the team he grew up watching and playing with for the past ten years and which team is built soley on cultural background of which he is a part.

Athletic is one of the most storied teams in La Liga. They have not been relegated and this is even more amazing with the money that has come into football in recent years and the fact they only play with players of Basque heritage. Finding top level Basque players is getting harder and harder and keeping the ones they do find is proving difficult as well. Aduriz is one of those players. He is born and bred Athletic but once your talent emerges, the money that becomes available is hard to turn down so after ten years in their system, he was sold to Mallorca for 8 million and was arguably their best player at the time of the transfer. Any Athletic fan hates to see that happen. Its one thing to lose a player to a team like Real Madrid, but when Mallorca is taking your players, that has to be disheartening. The reality is that if their homegrown policy stays in place, they will be relegated soon. This may be the year.

After my travels in Spain when Basque seperatist violence was alot more prevalent then it is now, I found myself with a great respect for these people and they are some of the nices people in all of Spain. I dont want their team to be relegated but I dont want them getting points this weekend.

With Athletic coming into Palma this weekend, Aduriz has to feel mixed emotions about playing against his old team. While he has made sure he is on record saying he wants to make Mallorca win this weekend, he is lying when he says the Athletic chapter in his life is closed. He has to be a fan and wants them to win every game they play. As a Basque who played for them for years, he hates to see them again fighting for their survival in La Liga. The games circumstances will call for an inspired performance from him against his old club.

While Athletic does not see this as a special game because of Aduriz, they see it more of a game where they need points to avoid becoming the clear relegation favorite. This is a team that sits on five points, one above bottom club Osasuna, with no points in their last five games. They need to stop the bleeding and with Mallorca this week and Osasuna next week, they have to seize this opportunity or the standings will get even more troublesome for them.

With Mallorca its the same old story. They have a bunch of new players who are clearly talented, but their performance is inconsistent. All that said, if they had beaten Atletico last weekend, they would be in 6th spot holding the final UEFA Cup spot. Instead they are in a pack of similarly situated teams where one is going to be this years Zaragoza. We are still waiting for some consistency from them.

Having not played any of the big four clubs means Mallorcas point total is a little inflated. In a league where one win can vault you up the standings, a loss puts you close to the relegation zone. With the soft schedule to date and Athletic coming to Palma as a team who has shown nothing, combined with Aduriz wanting to give an inspired performance against his old club, this situation is a must win for the Reds.

With the game being at home against a team clearly in turmoil, I dont see how Mallorca does not get the full three points. Add the Aduriz angle and a win should be even more obvious. However we are not showing to be a 90 minute team so results will always be hard to predict. We do need to know the importance of getting points before we hit the big games later on in the schedule.

Lets hope Aduriz shows his Basque pride this weekend and inspires Mallorca to a victory. He can get back to worrying about his old club and why they arent winning next week.

Predicition

Mallorca 3-1 Athletic

Category: Mallorca Team News

Tags: Mallorca Team News

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