This is a really significant game at the bottom of La Liga and it’s one that neither can really afford to lose. With 17th placed Levante claiming a rare win last weekend, neither team will be out of the drop-zone if they win this match but the losers really will be staring down the barrel of a likely relegation to the Second tier.
Both teams have had thoroughly disappointing seasons. They’ve both changed coaches on two occasions this term with Paco Jemez and Clarence Seedorf the current men charged with steering their respective sides to safety.
On the surface, Jemez is making a better fight of it. Las Palmas have picked up a couple of league wins under the former Rayo Vallecano boss, having only won 3 games all season prior to Jemez’s appointment at the turn of the year. Depor meanwhile are yet to win in 6 outings under Seedorf but this match certainly offers him a good opportunity to open his account. While they’ve not faced any of the real powerhouses yet, on paper this is by far their most winnable game since the latest managerial switch.
On the whole, performances haven’t been quite as bad as 2 points from 6 games suggests. A missed penalty denied them maximum points against Espanyol and an average of 1.33 goals per game conceded under Seedorf is also a significant improvement on their season average of 2.11.
They’ve only suffered one home defeat this season against bottom half opposition, so that also makes you look upon Depor as the more likely victors here. In comparison to the other relegation candidates, you could make a strong case for suggesting they have the best squad too. Striker Lucas Perez for example was signed for big money by Arsenal as recently as 2016 but collectively they’ve badly under-performed this term.
Up against a Las Palmas side that are woeful travellers, the Galicians could enjoy some rare success though. Las Palmas have lost 71% of their away league games and average just 0.43 points per game on the road. Their two wins under Jemez have come at home and they’ve not won away in La Liga since September, when they beat rock bottom Malaga.
They’ve scored just one goal in their last eight away matches, conceding 19 themselves and with that kind of record, backing Depor to Win might just be the better option here as two poor sides clash.
After drawing the away leg of their Champions League tie 0-0 with Sevilla, Manchester United were understandably heavy favourites to progress. However, a dreadfully lacklustre performance saw them struggle to break Sevilla down on Tuesday, and a Wissam Ben Yedder brace in the second half saw the hosts needing three goals in the final 12 minutes. Unsurprisingly they couldn’t manage this, ending 2-1 down and crashing out of the Champions League.
This leaves their only realistic prospects of silverware this season as the FA Cup, so it’s unlikely that Jose Mourinho will opt to rest any players on Saturday evening.
Overall Manchester United are actually in good form. They have won nine of their last 13 competitive matches, and all but one of these failures to win came away from home. At Old Trafford they have lost just two competitive games this season, winning 15 of their other 17 outings. Not to mention their defensive stability, which has seen them keep a clean sheet in 13 of their 19 home games this season.
This is bad news for the visiting Brighton. They lost 2-0 at Everton last weekend to end their seven match unbeaten streak, but their troubles away from home this season have been clearly evident.