Mallorca will get their 2023-24 Copa del Rey campaign underway on Wednesday evening with a first-round encounter away to Boiro at the Campo Municipal de Barrana.
The visitors are currently on nine points and in 15th place in La Liga, while the hosts lead Preferente de Galicia – Group 1 with 18 points after eight matches.
Match preview
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Boiro successfully cleared the first hurdle of this knockout tournament by defeating CD Monte 1-0 in Cantabria, with the only goal of the match coming from Emilio Carril.
While most make the hosts massive underdogs in this encounter, there have been indications of genuine expectation of a positive result from them owing to their solid league performance this campaign.
In fact, the expectation is so great that the club's board were forced to move the opening day of ticket sales up by 24 hours after the initial 1200+ tickets that were put up for sale for sponsors and partners sold out in no time.
The reason behind the lofty ambitions owes heavily to their unbeaten record this season, which includes five league wins and four draws, while currently riding a four-match win streak in all competitions.
While this is set to be a special occasion for the hosts, they did compete in the first round of this competition once before, in the 2016-17 season, when they were beaten by CD Guijuelo 3-1 after extra time.
Meanwhile, Mallorca will likely see this fixture as a welcomed switch-up from La Liga, where they have been struggling to find their best form up to this stage in the season.
The Pirates come into this match off the back of a 0-0 draw to Getafe over the weekend, which extended their recent record to six matches without a win, including four draws and two losses.
Javier Aguirre's side finished with 50 points and in ninth place in the top flight last season, missing out on a Conference League qualifier spot by just three points.
The Vermilions have reached the final of this grand old competition on three occasions in the past, losing in 1990-91 and 1997-98, while they went on to claim the crown in the 2002-03 season, beating Recreativo Huelva 3-0.
Indeed, the visitors are expected to dominate this match from the off, but Aguirre will also be looking for a strong performance to help build some much-needed momentum to carry into their weekend league fixture away to Real Betis.
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Team News
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Boiro boss Anxo Casalderrey could be tempted to select the same lineup that started the win over CD Monte in the previous round.
Juan Perez is expected to feature between the sticks for the hosts, and the 30-year-old will know that he is likely to be in for a busy evening.
With one eye on the trip to Estadio Benito Villamarin this weekend, Aguirre is expected to shuffle his pack in this match, though he will still want to put out a strong side, at least until his team get a safe lead.
Sergi Darder is the only enforced absentee due to injury, and the midfielder is expected to remain sidelined for a few more weeks.
Amath Diedhiou could start up top for the visitors in this match along with Cyle Larin after the pair were given the best part of the second half from the bench in the last match.
Boiro possible starting lineup:
J. Perez; Bermo, Noya, Angelo, Vidal; Carril, Ferreiro, Blanco, Garcia; Suarez, P. Perez
Mallorca possible starting lineup:
Greif; Gonzalez, Nastasic, Valjent, Lato; Costa, Mascarell, Rodriguez; Ndiaye, Larin, Llabres
We say: Boiro 1-3 Mallorca
While the host have been very good in their domestic league this season, they face a massive step up in class in this match. Mallorca are in need of a solid result, having failed to win a match in over a month, and we feel they will get the job done fairly comfortably here.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Devesh Jaganath
