Mallorca vs Espanyol – News and Probable Lineups

Espanyol will seek their first victory of 2026 on Sunday afternoon, as they travel to Estadi Mallorca Son Moix to face Mallorca in Spain’s top division.

The Catalan team currently sits seventh in the La Liga standings, three points behind the sixth-placed Celta Vigo, while Mallorca is in 18th position, one point adrift of 17th-placed Elche.

Match overview

Mallorca finds themselves in a fierce fight for survival in Spain’s top league, currently placed 18th in the table, one point behind Elche, who are in 17th, with 11 matches remaining.

Martin Demichelis’ side will enter this fixture following a 2-2 draw with Osasuna, which put an end to a streak of four consecutive defeats in La Liga.

At home this season, Mallorca has demonstrated relative strength, gathering 19 points from 13 fixtures. This is especially crucial given their dismal away performance, which ranks as the second-worst in Spain’s top flight this year.

The Pirates are currently the least in-form team in La Liga, managing one draw and four losses in their last five matches, but a win in this fixture could significantly boost morale.

Mallorca achieved a 2-1 victory against Espanyol in the corresponding fixture last season, though the Catalan side won the earlier encounter this term 3-2.

Overall, Espanyol holds a slight advantage in their head-to-head record against Mallorca, having emerged victorious in 31 out of their 71 encounters while suffering 27 defeats.

The visitors are coming off a 1-1 draw against bottom-placed Real Oviedo, still seeking their elusive first win of 2026.

In fact, Manolo Gonzalez’s team has not secured a win in Spain’s top division since their 2-1 victory over Athletic Bilbao back in December 2025.

Espanyol has garnered only four points from their last 10 fixtures, leading to their fall from the European qualification spots into seventh place in the standings.

However, they are only three points behind the sixth-placed Celta Vigo, which is quite remarkable given their difficulties since the turn of the year.

Mallorca La Liga form:

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Spanish La Liga form:

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Team News

Mallorca will be unable to call upon Jan Virgili due to a suspension, following his red card in the recent 2-2 draw with Osasuna.

Takuma Asano also remains sidelined with a hamstring injury, while Marash Kumbulla, Antonio Raillo, Javi Llabres, and Jan Salas are also doubtful for this weekend’s matchup.

Vedat Muriqi has netted 18 goals in La Liga this season and will again play a key role in the attacking third.

Espanyol, on the other hand, continues to miss long-term absentee Javi Puado.

Nevertheless, the Catalan team will regain two important players for this match, as Charles Pickel and Edu Exposito return after serving suspensions.

Kike Garcia is expected to retain his place in the attack for Espanyol, but there may also be an opportunity for Roberto Fernandez to join the forwards.

Mallorca probable starting XI:

Novel; Maffeo, Valgent, D Lopez, Mojica; Mascarell, S Costa, Morlanes, Torres; Muriqi, Joseph

Espanyol probable starting XI:

Dmitrovic; El Hilali, Riedel, Cabrera, Romero; Ngonge, Exposito, Lozano, Dolan; Fernandes, K Garcia

While Espanyol’s winless streak will eventually come to an end, it is not anticipated to happen this weekend. Despite Mallorca’s challenges, they possess significant talent in the attacking third, which should be sufficient to secure at least a point in this matchup.