Sporting Gijón vs Mallorca Match Preview
Retaining one point against Mourinho's Madrid was celebrated as a victory by RCD Mallorca. The team has shown concentration and solidity in the wings, and that image will be tested now against one of the new comers of the category. Manolo Preciado's Sporting needs to constitute a coherent image as a team to receive the south team this week, and Nacho Novo's role in the midfield will most surely be determinant. In the last four matches, two victories for each side had been obtained, but the upper hand might be for Mallorca, who celebrated a loose 3-0 victory back in March. After a successful performance in South Africa with Uruguay, Sebastian Eguren has learnt enough and his ball recovery skills will surely aid Sporting against one of the most creative midfields on the league.
Neither Mallorca nor Sporting managed to score in this tournament yet, and the crowds are eagerly expecting for a celebration. Fernando Cavenaghi might be playing his first match with Mallorca, and he might have the heavy burden of covering the place left behind by Borja Valero upon his departure. Pep Lluis Martí's injury was a bucket of cold water for Michael Laudrup, for much of his strategy had to do with Marti's interaction with the rest of the strikers. He might be sidelined for a few weeks, and Mallorca's coach should find a way to replace him soon not to be left with a split team. Both teams will be looking forward to score their first goal and accomplish a victory that might take them to the upper half of the positions table.. who will make it?
Sporting Gijón vs Mallorca Match Report
Mallorca's players suffered a clear ambush in Gijon this week, as Manuel Preciado and his team kept its rival from building on the midfield and thanks to their superior aerial play, opened the score at the beginning of the second half (Botia) and confirmed the result in the last five minutes: Diego Castro closed the deal on a penalty shot that costed Nunes a red card. The only flaw for the local team was Nacho Novo's performance, without a single shot against Mallorca's goal and responsible for almost 20% of the faults committed.
Michael Laudrup reacted too slowly to change the course of the game, and Mallorca's strikers starved, unable to pose a real threat to Preciado's goalkeeper. The team has not yet scored and some modifications will have to take place to get the team back on feet for this year's fight. Fernando Cavenaghi might have to grab the bull by its horns and claim the lead of the offense, for the Rojinegros might never stop drifting if they don't straight their path quickly. Excellent recovery for Sporting, slowly harmonizing the forces of its players.
