Girona will look to create further memories in an unforgettable season when they face Mallorca in Wednesday's Copa del Rey quarter-final clash.
Mallorca have avoided defeat in their last four competitive games, while their opponents are unbeaten in 17 matches since losing to Real Madrid in September.
Match preview
© Reuters
Mallorca are preparing to make their second quarter-final appearance in three seasons after Cyle Larin scored a 120th-minute winner to eliminate second-tier Tenerife in the recent last-16 tie, which ultimately had to be settled in extra time following a goalless 90 minutes.
Javier Aguirre's side went on to score another late goal in Sunday's league clash with Villarreal, as Javi Llabres netted a 91st-minute equaliser to cancel out Alexander Sorloth's opener and ensure that 15th-placed Mallorca remained level on points with the Yellow Submarine.
As a result of the 1-1 draw, Los Piratas are now unbeaten in four competitive games, while their only defeat in their last 11 outings took place against Spanish giants Real Madrid.
Mallorca will now turn their focus to the Copa del Rey, as they look to reach the semi-finals for the first time since 2008-09 and keep their hopes alive of lifting the cup for the second time in their history.
While they may be bracing themselves for a tough test against Girona, the hosts have at least proven to be a tough team to beat at Estadi Mallorca Son Moix this season, having avoided defeat in each of their last nine home matches in all competitions (W2, D7).
© Reuters
Girona are still in the hunt for an unthinkable double after bouncing back from a goalless draw against Almeria to claim consecutive victories over Rayo Vallecano and Sevilla in the Copa del Rey and league respectively.
After brushing past Rayo via a 3-1 scoreline, Girona fought back from a goal down to thrash Sevilla 5-1 thanks to Artem Dovbyk's six-minute hat-trick as well as goals from Viktor Tsygankov and Cristhian Stuani.
Having now won 16 of their 21 league matches (D4, L1), Michel's side are currently sitting at the top of the table and one point clear of Real Madrid, who have a game in hand.
While Girona are dreaming of winning the La Liga title in just their fourth season in the top flight, they will now focus on Wednesday's trip to Mallorca, where they will compete in the Copa del Rey quarter-finals for just the second time after previously doing so in the 2018-19 season when they lost out to Real Madrid over two legs.
With the Blanquivermells targeting their first appearance in a Copa del Rey semi-finals, they will look to draw inspiration from the fact that they have already beaten Mallorca this season after winning 5-3 when the two sides met at Estadi Montilivi in September.
Team News
© Reuters
Mallorca are expected to be without Ivan Cuellar and Pablo Maffeo due to injury, but Giovanni Gonzalez will return to the side after serving a one-match suspension.
Canada international Larin is set to lead the line after scoring in all three of his Copa del Rey appearances this season.
Vedat Muriqi returned from injury to make a late substitute appearance against Villarreal, and Mallorca's talismanic striker could be given more valuable minutes off the bench on Wednesday.
As for the visitors, they are still unable to call the injured trio of David Lopez, Toni Villa and Joel Roca, while Juanpe is a major doubt after being forced off in the first half against Sevilla.
Eric Garcia has missed the last three matches through injury, and the Barcelona loanee remains a fitness concern for the quarter-final clash.
In more positive news, Aleix Garcia will be available for the away trip after the midfielder served a one-match suspension at the weekend.
Mallorca possible starting lineup:
Greif; Sanchez, Raillo, Nastasic, Copete, Lato; Darder, Morlanes, S. Costa, D. Rodriguez; Larin
Girona possible starting lineup:
Carlos; Martinez, Yaakobishvili, Blind, Gutierrez; A. Garcia, Herrera; Tysgankov, Portu, Savio; Dovbyk
We say: Mallorca 1-2 Girona
Mallorca will be looking to make full use of home advantage, having lost just one of their 11 competitive home matches this season.
While we think that the hosts could frustrate Girona during periods of the contest, we expect the visitors to draw upon their attacking firepower to claim a narrow win and advance to the semi-finals.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
