Out of Luck

Defeat to Villarreal marks the first time this season that Mallorca have emerged without at least a point from a game against La Liga’s upper tier of teams, and despite heading into the weekend with the hope of another surprising upset, a loss was always the realistic expectation. The team had, up until this point, performed remarkably well against Spain’s elite – with two victories and two draws – and so the reality was that the streak simply had to come to an end at some point.

Mallorca can take something from their performance at El Madrigal, though. They started the match with intent, and their response after initially going a goal down was admirable. It all culminated in Jonathan de Guzman’s fantastic leveller, a goal deserving of more, but which will probably be overlooked and forgotten given its context. This period of the game saw the return of Mallorca’s rugged attitude; their determination to win and pull themselves back into it. Granted, given the recent hostility towards Villarreal as well as the fact that Mallorca could adopt their underdog approach, this was to be expected. Still, it was good to see that the team do still have it in them when the time is right.

Laudrup’s approach from the start looked perfect, adopting the high-pressuring, counter-attacking style that has paid dividends for Los Bermellones so far this season. Villarreal, though, were given far too much space around the box, and their sharpness meant that Mallorca paid early on. It was a blow to Laudrup’s game-plan, but the team recovered quickly. After Villarreal’s second, however – thanks to a somewhat harsh penalty – there was no recovery in sight as Mallorca seemed to fold, going through the motions for the rest of the match. There was plenty of time left, but it seemed like the team had lost their belief, and the rest of the game was a rather comfortable affair for the home side.

The match helped to underline Mallorca’s glaring inconsistency so far this campaign. If you use the game to represent the season as a whole, you can see how the team is capable of moments of brilliance – with highly intense, driven performances – before falling into complete complacency the next, lacking the desire or the intent to win. This serves to show that the potential to improve their league position is there; it just requires perhaps a little more focus.

Unfortunately, in the wake of defeats like these, it highlights further how imperative it is not to throw away points at home against teams like Racing, especially in the manner Mallorca did last week. A victory then would have given the team a safety net and the confidence they would need to head to Villarreal without the pressure or expectancy to grab a result. Now, however, Los Bermellones head into the league’s Christmas break reeling on the back of three successive defeats. Confidence and morale will be at their lowest points so far this season, and now the pressure really starts to mount on the team as they look ahead to the improvement they must make before the New Year.

There is a lot of work ahead for Laudrup and his men, but they have a good opportunity to snap the losing streak at home to Hercules. One may point to this as another occasion built for complacence, where Mallorca may suffer from too much expectation and a lack of motivation or desire. However, the pressure to get more points on the board and solidify a comfortable place in mid-table, away from the grievances of the bottom half, means that this is an important match. If Mallorca were to extend their losing streak further, it would be a disaster.

Certainly, as matches grow in importance, the margin for complacency shrinks dramatically. The positive thing for Mallorca is that, as we have seen, they seem to raise their game when it matters most. As the pressure to win increases, if Los Bermellones can elevate their intensity accordingly, the wins may well flow once more.

Just before the break, though, Mallorca have a final concern, and one which may actually prove a welcome distraction from the league situation. Midweek, Mallorca head to Almeria for the Last 16 of the Copa del Rey. With no distractions lying in wait, Los Bermellones should look to get a foothold in the first leg of this tie with an away goal or two. There is no reason Mallorca shouldn’t set their sights high and aim to progress to the next round – or even beyond – and a positive result would not only increase their chances of that, but it would be the perfect tonic to remedy low morale and increase confidence before the league program resumes.

What’s more, a victory would be the perfect Christmas present.

- Phil M.