Mallorca vs Valencia prediction: SPAIN: LaLiga betting tips on match 2023-10-06 16:30.
Mallorca finished just three points off UEFA football last season, but based on how their current La Liga (LL) campaign is faring, their 20-year wait to compete in continental football looks unlikely to end soon. They have picked up just one LL win (D4, L3) this season and come into the round just two points above the relegation zone, yet the mood in the camp appears to be high. Following successive 2-2 draws against Barcelona and then Rayo Vallecano, midfielder Dani RodrĂguez assessed the team’s performance across both games as what “everyone wants to see” from Mallorca.
Their two strikes against Barcelona a fortnight ago delivered Mallorca’s first home league goals of the season, but as only two other teams had scored fewer home LL goals after round eight, it’s still something they’ll need to continue improving promptly. Only one of the last five H2Hs at this venue produced more than 2.5 match goals, meaning this might not be the fixture that bolsters that tally, but one defeat in that time (W3, D1) does indicate it could be a prime opportunity to secure more points.
Valencia make the trip to the Balearic island in faltering form after failing to win any of their last three LL matches, suffering defeats in each of the last two without scoring a goal. The latter against Real Betis saw them concede three goals for the first time in a LL contest since March, something that captain Gabriel Paulista admitted post-match was a “tough pill to swallow”.
Paulista also expressed his frustrations that Valencia conceded from a set-piece in that game, stating the team had been working hard in training to defend similar situations better. That’s likely to have been a big focus again this week given no side has conceded more from dead-ball situations than Valencia (four) coming into the round, whilst ominously no team had scored more set piece goals than next opponents Mallorca (four).
Players to watch: Mallorca’s Vedat Muriqi is in fine form with four goals in his last four LL matches, whilst his header also settled the last H2H. Valencia’s Hugo Duro has failed to add to his three LL goals across the last three rounds, but does remain a problem for defenders and comes into the round as the most fouled LL player (24).
Hot stat: Valencia have managed just one clean sheet across their last 24 LL away matches (W4, D6, L14).