Valencia will be looking to make it two wins from two games when they host Las Palmas in La Liga. Los Che will be coming off a convincing 2-1 win over Sevilla at Estadio Ramon. Las Palmas started their re-entry into this level of play with a 1-1 draw against Mallorca at home.
Preview (Valencia vs Las Palmas)
Valencia had their worst season in Spain’s top division since their relegation to the Segunda Division in 1985-86. They finished a disappointing 16th in La Liga last year. Los Che hasn’t been a top-four team since 2018–19. Given their financial constraints, it’s tough to see them qualifying for the Champions League anytime soon. Valencia’s young players are highly good, though, and there’s no doubt that. This was on show during their outstanding 2-1 victory over Sevilla last Friday. 20-year-old Javi Guerra scored the game-winning goal off the bench in the 88th minute. The players would have felt much more confident.
Cenk Ozkacar and Pepelu are the only additions Ruben Baraja’s team has made so far this summer. Yunus Musah, Jorge Saenz, Edinson Cavani, and Toni Lato have left. Given the situation, a top-half La Liga finish this season would be viewed as a success. They will be working to improve their away performance in the 2023–24 season. They only collected 13 points from their 19 away games the previous season. The previous game between these two teams ended in a 1-1 tie for Las Palmas. Jonathan Viera scored the game’s first goal from the penalty spot in the 29th minute. Antonio Raillo tied the score in the 70th.
La Union Deportiva, which spent five years in the second division before securing a return by coming in second in the Segunda Division last season, was last in La Liga during the 2017–18 season. It will be interesting to see how the club performs this season under highly regarded head coach Garcia Pimienta, and anything above 18th would be considered a success this season.This summer, Las Palmas signed eight new players, notably Sandro Ramirez and Munir El Haddadi, while Wilfrid Kaptoum and Florin Andone were among those who left the team.
Team News
Due to a knee issue, Valencia will be without Marcos de Sousa again on Friday, and Alberto Mari will not play due to a thigh issue. The majority of the lineup from Estadio Ramon should play again, and head coach Baraja would have been pleased with how his squad played against Sevilla. Guerra’s late goal, though, may force his introduction, and Dimitri Foulquier is also vying for a spot in the starting lineup. For this game, Las Palmas will be without the services of two members of its first team.
The team’s starting lineup against Mallorca last time out had Marc Cardona at the head of the line and Sandro Ramirez on the left. Head coach Pimienta may decide to stick with such lineup this time.El Haddadi, a loan player who came in against Mallorca in the second half, is a candidate to start. Julian Araujo, making his debut for Barcelona, is also vying to play in this game. There is every indication that this will be a highly entertaining game, and both teams will be confident that they can score goals in the final third of the field.
Valencia 2 – 1 Las Palmas
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