Today like yesterday, the good moment of Real Mallorca
This League has a pleasant surprise, Javier Aguirre's Mallorca, who with ups and downs fights for a place in the qualifying zone for European competitions. As you know, Football Host likes to watch and analyze the world of football, so this time we will talk about the transformation of the Mexican coach's team.
TWENTY YEARS IS NOTHING
And we are going to get on our particular DeLorean to discover some similarities between this Real Mallorca and the vermilion team from just over twenty years ago, which under the orders of Luis Aragonés, in 2000/01, achieved a fantastic third place, when In the League, Deportivo de La Coruña was the title favorite and Valencia was among the first classified. As time goes.
Then "El Sabio de Hortaleza", was then 63 years old, he was an old fox from the Spanish benches, and he knew how to direct the locker room like a good school teacher. In that squad there were expert repeaters on the brink of retirement like Miguel Ángel Nadal, Miquel Soler, Olaizola, Paco Soler, Marcos Martín or Vicente Engonga, and diamonds to polish like Dani Güiza, Albert Riera and an explosive Samuel Eto'o, “La Perla Negra”, who loved Zapatones as if he were her father. To this squad we had to add names of the magnitude of the Nigerian Finidi George and the Argentine talent that has combined so well in Palma since the days of Amato and Héctor Cúper. In that great team from the beginning of the millennium, the goalkeepers were Germán Burgos, Leo Franco and Carlos Roa. And there was Ariel Ibagaza, Siviero and Leo Biagini.
Those wonderful years were the most golden era in the history of Real Mallorca, culminating in the conquest of the Copa del Rey in 2003, already with Gregorio Manzano on the Vermellón bench. 20 years ago how beautiful it was…
But after that effervescence came the sporting and institutional crisis and, without Mateu Alemany juggling, the team decreased until it became a regular in the Second Division, and in 2017 it descended into the hells of Second B, the third category of Spanish football, a long time ago. It didn't sink so low. Luckily, the Mallorcan ensaimada only lasted one season and we already know that everything comes back in football and so, in 2019, after a heart-stopping play-off against Deportivo de La Coruña, the club would return to the First Division. They were relegated to Second again during the damn pandemic, but they would return to the elite on 21/22, and now, the project, with another old fox in charge, the Mexican Javier Aguirre, the club seems more than consolidated in First Division and dreams with reliving the achievements of the late 90s and early new millennium.
THE THING LOOKS GOOD
Only one point separated Los Piratas from relegation last season, and the leaders chose to maintain the Basque Aguirre project, trusting in the good vibes that the manito generated in the locker room. The coach, who is 64 years old, was hired nine days from the end and achieved the objective of maintaining the category. His character is very reminiscent of Sabio de Hortaleza, as football also emanates from the hairs of his ears, the old school of coaches, who knows how to handle the Mallorcan environment so well.
How was the 21/22 season of the Vermillions? They accumulated only 39 points, product of 10 wins, 9 draws and 19 losses, culminating in sixteenth position in the table. It was a team that conceded too many goals, 63 in 38 games! and was only able to score 36 goals.
Aguirre knew that he had to improve in the defensive zone and rearm the team's base, this would give him security and confidence. Little by little he was achieving it, so much so that he is the fourth with the fewest goals conceded (22 goals against) in the 22 games that have been played on 22/23.
And it is that Aguirre has hit the key, the new football is played in the areas, and Real Mallorca dominates them with two battle warriors from the Balkans: the Serbian goalkeeper Pedrag Rajkovic and the Kosovar striker Vedat Muriqi.
Rajkovic is a great goalkeeper, with his 191 centimeters height he manages to clear the most impossible balls, he came from the French Stade de Reims, and surprises with his elasticity and reflexes. His good work has saved many points this season.
And what to say about Vedat Muriqi! A colossus of 194 centimeters and 92 kg in weight, a beast that seems to eat screws for breakfast, capable of finishing off refrigerators and butane cylinders, the pirate captain who breaks his soul in every divided ball, who wins all disputes and also scores goals even with the ass. He arrived from Lazio and has become the idol of the fans. He is one of those forwards that fans always want to see in their team and never the rival. "Muriqi is God" read banners on the island.
Thus, Mallorca has become a reliable team, they go out onto the green to protect themselves (they do it very well) and make their rivals uncomfortable. Going to play at the Visit Mallorca Estadi (is the Son Moix field called that now?) is no longer an easy thing, Real Madrid, European champions, who were devoured by the soldiers of the Basque Aguirre, know it well. This season, Real Mallorca has 9 wins, 4 draws and 9 losses in 22 games, 3 points behind Rayo Vallecano (another surprise) that is qualifying for the UEFA Conference League.
Aguirre asks for calm and says that the goal is still permanence, but there are many of us who are excited about the season that the team from Palma de Mallorca is having. Can he repeat what he did in 2001 and get a place in European competition? Time will tell, but we will remain attentive to this return to the past of today's Mallorqueta, so similar to yesterday's. Just in case, his stadium has already been dressed up for the occasion.
