Never Give Up
By: Jeremy | March 9th, 2009If there is a reason teams dont often take the Copa seriously is that a run deep into the tournament can often have a negative effect on their play in La Liga. While the better teams can often run out a second unit that can still beat most teams, when a team like Mallorca, who is facing real relegation issues, manages to continue to progress in the Copa, at some point because of lack of overall depth, an important La Liga game can often be effected.
While many would say Manzano put out a second choice lineup in the second leg of the Copa with Barca to avoid this problem, the sheer emotion of that game had an effect on the entire squad, including the players that were resting. This was especially true when the team was a penalty kick conversion from equalizing the tie and being a man up at home. As frustrated as I was with that game. I can only imagine what it does to the players. The end result is the game this weekend with Betis was somehow going to see the physical and emotional response to such a long Copa run. The hope was that with the match being at home, and Betis being a mediocre team, that we could do what it took to get a win.
There was no excuse for Betis to get three goals while we did nothing. While they didnt seem to attack much, the first goal just seemed to spiral into three goals and with 22 minutes left all seemed lost and important home match would be sacrificed. Use any excuse you want, but this never should happen against a fellow relegation struggler, especially at home.
While the team could have rolled over and just packed it in, Webo and Castro decided they would step up. Two goals from Castro sandwiched around a Webo goal and the team came all the way back. A 3-3 draw. Not the ideal result, but a valuable point that certainly was not expected as the second half wasted away. The obvious question is where was this motivation in the first 60 minutes of this game? Copa hangover? A typical Mallorca disappearing act? No matter your opinion, this is very frustrating.
This result however shows that this team is going to fight for everything the remainder of the year. For all that has gone on, to come back in this game could have some positive results in later games. Teams that are not unified do not come back from such deficits. I knew that we could be in real trouble heading into this game, but we managed to fight back and get a point.
For all the positivity, there is still much work to be done. We are now three points clear of the relegation zone, but we have a tougher schedule then most of our relegation rivals. La Liga is so tight that from Athletic, who is in 10th, all the way down, every team has to be worried about relegation. We sit in 17th, only three points behind 10th place Athletic. With Numancia beating Valencia this weekend, there is still so much that could save each team in the fight. We head to Barcelona to face Espanyol next weekend in what will be a huge match. Espanyol has shown they can step up when they need a big result so it will be another challenge for Mallorca to continue this unbeaten run.
Lets hope rest and time will allow this team to focus on what is still a monumental task, which is survival. While the positive emotion that comes with such a comeback is a huge lift, the past must be forgotten. Webo and Chori Castro deserve more time on the field and Manzano is a coach we still have confidence in. However the schedule will soon get more difficult and we have to continue to get good results these next few weeks. But for now, lets move on from what was an exciting but gut wrenching week for the team and its fans.
Category: Mallorca Team News
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