Mallorca-Zaragoza; Guizas Last Stand

By: Jeremy | May 17th, 2008

Even though I dont want to accept the reality that Dani Guiza, the likely winner of the Pichichi this year, is playing his last game for the club on Sunday, I do accept that if not for him, the final game of the season would mean nothing and we would be celebrating anything that kept us from relegation. Instead, we come into the final weekend with a real shot at finishing 6th and securing a UEFA Cup spot. While such a result would not cause Guiza to change his mind and stay, it might allow us to sign some other players with the 15 million we will be getting for him.

As big a game as this is for Mallorca, its probably a bigger game for Zaragoza. For a team that was expected to be where Mallorca is now, they instead find themselves in the relegation zone and will not only need to win on the road, where this year they have one win in eighteen matches, they will need help from other clubs. The irony is there are two games where the teams will be trying to help each other as Racing Santander sits on 57 points with Mallorca on 56. Santanders weekend opponent is Osasuna with 43 points and Zaragoza has 42 points. Zaragoza beating Mallorca helps Santander maintain their hold on sixth place and Osasuna beating Santander not only keeps them in the top flight but gives Mallorca a real chance for the final UEFA Cup Spot.

There is no reason to believe that Guiza will not have a big game. It is his final game in the Mallorca shirt, he needs to win the Pichichi, and show the big clubs yet again that he is a bargain at 15 million. With the team goal on the line, their recent form including a stunning win against Barca last week, the home fans cheering, combined with Zaragozas woeful road record, should make this a seriously winnable game for the Reds. I know teams fighting for survival tend to play better, but Zaragoza has been so poor this year that combined with all the infighting, they are going to end up in 18th place and go back to Segunda. Considering what was expected of them this year, this would be a major surprise.

As Mallorca tries to wind down the year and secure European football, there is still the issue of who will be leaving and staying. With Guiza gone, we did receive some positive comments from Ibagaza this week as he made it clear he was not going anywhere and will likely stay in Palma to finish his career. He is one of those players that is settled with a family, likes where he lives, and is happy to play for Mallorca. He knows who he is and where he is with his career. He also knows where Guiza is and has made it clear that Guiza needs to move to a big club. While Ibagaza still has a couple years left of great play, we should be happy to have him if for no other reason then his maturity and guidance in the dressing room. A player like him is key to a small clubs success. Now we just have to see what Arango will do and who will come to Mallorca to play with the money we have. Manzano has shown great ability to bring in players and he will have more money to spend in the summer, but with UEFA Cup football, he might get some better players then he thought which would solidify the club as a top half of the table team and not a relegation candidate.

With so much on the line this weekend and all the factors for victory in our favor, I cant see Mallorca losing this game despite Zaragozas needing to win. If Osasuna can get a tie on the road, I think we can slide into sixth and that would be something. For all the joy that would bring, you have to wonder if we could be in the Champions League if not for the inconsistent play in the beginning of the year.

Prediction Mallorca 3-1 Zaragoza.

Party in Palma this weekend.