Cadiz won their first away game of the season 0-1 in Sevilla on Wednesday night and that three points means Real Mallorca will have to beat relegated Almeria in Son Moix on Sunday night at 7pm. If we beat them, who although relegated won’t be a “gimme” for Mallorca, we will be safe in La Liga for a fourth successive season – a record for the club. With only two games remaining, we need two points, but if we beat Almeria on Sunday our long-suffering fans will be more than happy. Sevilla’s defeat put the bottom part of the La Liga table in turmoil but surely in front of a full house on Sunday, Mallorca should do the business providing, of course, that coach Aguirre puts out an aggressive XI for a change.
In Almeria’s midst is a certain Luka Romero who, on June 24 2020, playing for Real Mallorca, became the youngest player ever to compete in La Liga at the tender age of 15 years and 219 days. When he came on against Real Madrid, seasoned campaigner Sergio Ramos asked Luka how old he was and did his mum and dad know he’s out. Since then, Luka’s been playing in Italy with Lazio and AC Milan and is on loan at Almeria.
Mallorca look set to part ways with Aguirre
The Bulletin’s sister publication Ultima Hora reported on Wednesday lunchtime that Real Mallorca’s 65-year-old Mexican coach Javier Aguirre’s contract will not be renewed when it expires on June 30, after he’s been in charge at Son Moix for two seasons. In that time he has kept Mallorca in La Liga and got them into their first Copa del Rey final for 21 years. Other media outlets claimed the club was yet to confirm the news officially, and had not spoken to Aguirre, but details are likely to be settled when La Liga finishes a week tomorrow on Saturday, May 25.
It is expected the club will go in a different direction next season and Aguirre’s likely replacement is 46-year-old Osasuna boss Jagoba Arrasate. According to several media outlets, Mallorca’s sporting director Pablo Ortells is in advanced talks with Arrasate’s agents and he is believed to be top of the list to take over.
Aguirre has met Real Mallorca’s objectives since he took over in the 2021-22 season with the team deep in danger of relegation. We achieved an agonising salvation game on the last day at Osasuna and Aguirre was hailed as a hero. The following campaign we almost made it into Europe after finishing ninth but this season we’ve suffered much more, in a historic campaign the highlight of which was a place in the Copa del Rey final.
With all of Aguirre’s attributes, his football on the pitch has become boring. Reality shows we’ve won seven games all season out of 36 played and have only won once on the road last November. Goal scoring has become a major problem and we’ve only scored 29 goals, most of them from defenders, and conceded 41. In my opinion Aguirre has taken this team as far as he can and it’s time for a change. His defensive system no longer bears fruit, with many players unable to perform to the best of their abilities, and support was growing for the idea that he had to go. The euphoria of our cup run had only papered over the cracks.
Arrasate looks a safe choice for Mallorca and his six years at Osasuna pushed the Pamplona club upwards into new heights, taking them into Europe and a place in the Copa del Rey final last year. A former primary school teacher, he transformed Osasuna after taking over at El Sadar in 2018 and even at 46 is considered one of the most exciting managers in Europe, known for his “rock and roll” football, being referred to as the Basque version of Jurgen Klopp ! Born in Berriatua in the Basque country, he played and coached at Real Sociedad and Numancia. He’s a great believer in giving youth a chance and many of the present squad have come through their Tajonar academy, something Aguirre doesn’t seem to bother with concerning our youngsters in Son Bibiloni.
While we’ve been unable to replace two quality players we had last season, Kang In Lee and Galaretta, sporting director Pablo Ortells brought in Darder and Canadian striker Cyle Larin signed from Valladolid. He has been a total enigma, having played in 31 games scoring only two goals. His credit has almost run out. He fails to make any impact either when he starts or comes off the bench and has missed hundreds of opportunities, especially one-on-ones with goalkeepers. The Canadian striker has been here for 18 months and is reportedly still unable to communicate to any meaningful degree in Spanish. He’s also allegedly a very introverted person with little interaction with his team mates although they seem to like him, saying he’s a good guy.
AND FINALLY
A guy went to visit his 98-year-old grandfather in an old folks home. Asking his grandad how things were in the home and was he being looked after properly, grandad said “Everything’s just perfect.” “How about sleeping?” asked the guy. “Are you having a good night’s rest?” “Couldn’t be better,” replied grandad, “At 10 o’clock they bring me a cup of cocoa and a Viagra tablet and that’s it, I’m out like a light.” The guy isn’t happy and goes to see the nurse in charge. “Surely this can’t be true, what Grandad’s just told me?” he asked. “You give him, a 98-year-old man, Viagra? What’s going on?” The head nurse told him “Every night at 10 he gets his cocoa and a Viagra tablet and it works wonders. The hot cocoa makes him sleep and the Viagra stops him rolling out of bed!!”