Preview: Mallorca vs. Granada - prediction, team news, lineups

The visitors are currently 19th in the La Liga table, 10 points from the safety of 17th position, while Mallorca occupy 15th spot, five points ahead of 18th-placed Cadiz.

Match preview

Mallorca will take on Athletic Bilbao in the Copa del Rey final at the start of April, with the club looking to secure some major silverware, but their status as a top-flight team for next season is far from secure.

Indeed, Los Piratas are currently 15th in the La Liga table, only five points clear of the relegation zone, so they cannot afford to take their eye off the ball in Spain's top flight.

Javier Aguirre's side will enter this match off the back of a 1-0 defeat at Barcelona, but they have picked up seven points from their last five league games, which is a decent return considering their spot in the table.

Mallorca have collected 19 points from their 14 league matches at home this season, suffering only three defeats in the process, which is certainly a record that will hand them confidence heading into the final weeks of the campaign.

The Copa del Rey finalists have incredibly lost each of their last five La Liga matches to Granada, though, failing to overcome Saturday's opponents in Spain's top flight since March 2013.

Granada, meanwhile, will enter this match off the back of a 3-2 home loss to Real Sociedad, which made it back-to-back defeats, having also gone down 5-1 to Villarreal earlier this month.

Alexander Medina's side have not managed to triumph in the league since the start of January, and they are currently down in 19th position in the table, 10 points from 17th-placed Celta Vigo, albeit with a game in hand.

Granada need to pull off something special if they are to escape the bottom three, and there is no getting away from the fact that it has been a hugely disappointing campaign for the Segunda Division champions.

The Andalusian outfit have only managed to win twice in the league this season, while they have the joint-worst defensive record in the division, conceding 57 times, which is the same number as basement side Almeria.

Granada also have the worst away from in La Liga this season, only picking up two points from 13 matches, but as mentioned, they are on a five-game winning run against Mallorca in Spain's top flight.

Mallorca La Liga form:

L

W

L

D

W

L

Mallorca form (all competitions):

W

L

D

D

W

L

Granada La Liga form:

L

D

D

D

L

L

Team News

Mallorca have three injury doubts for this contest, with Matija Nastasic, Martin Valjent and Pablo Maffeo all needing late fitness tests to determine whether they will be available.

There is one definite absentee for the hosts at this stage, though, with Samu Costa missing through suspension due to the yellow card that he picked up against Barcelona last time out.

Dani Rodriguez is expected to replace Costa in midfield, but it might otherwise be the same side that started against Barcelona, with Abdon Prats and Antonio Sanchez set to start on the bench.

As for Granada, Jesus Vallejo will again be missing with a thigh problem, while Sergio Ruiz will serve a suspension after picking up a milestone booking against Real Sociedad.

Martin Hongla is likely to replace Ruiz in the middle of midfield, while Theo Corbeanu could be introduced in a wide area.

Myrto Uzuni has scored nine times in La Liga this season, including a brace against Real Sociedad, and he is again set to be joined by Lucas Boye in the final third of the field.

Mallorca possible starting lineup:

Rajkovic; Gonzalez, Nastasic, Raillo, Copete, Lato; Darder, D Rodriguez, Morlanes; Muriqi, Larin

Granada possible starting lineup:

Batalla; R Sanchez, Mendez, Miquel, Neva; Pellistri, Hongla, Gumbau, Corbeanu; Boye, Uzuni

We say: Mallorca 1-0 Granada

Granada's away form this season has been incredibly poor, and we are struggling to make a case for them in this match. Mallorca are in need of the points to keep themselves above the relegation zone, and we are expecting the home side to navigate their way to an important three points in front of their own supporters.

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