The Royal Society receive this Sunday at UD Las Palmas in a match corresponding to the matchday 17 of the League. The Txuri-Urdin team will face a rival revitalized by the arrival of Diego Martínez on their bench after the dismissal of Luis Carrión, having won five of the seven championship games played since the replacement. The truth is that, with Carrión himself at the helm, the Canaries had been creating chances in almost all of their duels, but the good offensive production was marred by the defense concessions. Without neglecting the attack, the incoming coach has gradually plugged the existing leaks until allowing the team to land in Anoeta having saved a very delicate qualifying situation, thanks to a much more solid version.
The possible eleven of UD Las Palmas in Anoeta, with Herzog taking over from the suspended Álex Suárez, Jaime Mata doing the same with Fabio Silva (also suspended) and Marvin at right back for the injured Viti.
The losses with which Las Palmas lands in Anoeta open the door to a possible system change. On his last visit to Real, in fact, coach Diego Martínez, then leading Espanyol, already opted to change to a 5-3-2 to defend the txuri-urdin. The analyzes prior to the match, in any case, must be based on the stable behavior that the Canary Islands team has been having with its current coach, within a nuanced 4-2-3-1 drawing depending on the locations of your midfielders and the moments of the game.
Las Palmas attracts Barcelona’s pressure on Montjuic combined from defenders and goalkeeper through a clear 4-2-3-1.
Las Palmas-Valladolid: the different staggering of the three yellow midfielders generates, only with Essugo’s most advanced position, a 4-3-3.
Offensive mobility
The usual behavior of Las Palmas in attack, in any case, tends to modify the patterns already seen, since we are talking about a very asymmetrical team. On the right wing, the former realist Sandro Ramirez It is synonymous with electricity and deep unchecking. On the left, meanwhile, the young Miller It takes the lime line as a mere starting point, to constantly center its position and thus join interior areas.
Very classic Las Palmas layout: left back Mika Mármol (arrow) takes over the entire left wing, thanks to Moleiro joining the interior lanes to draw a kind of square with the three midfielders.
Another common resource for the yellows: the theoretical left-footed winger Moleiro and the playmaker Javi Muñoz exchange their respective positions (arrows). Kirian has the ball and can contemplate both the short combination with Moleiro and a possible deep pass on the run to the outside by Javi Muñoz.
Watching Diego Martínez’s men play, what was mentioned before about the profiles of his wingers becomes very evident. Las Palmas makes Moleiro’s band, the left, its strong side: This is where he accumulates passes and turns his game into attack. The right with Sandro, meanwhile, means a much more direct routea circumstance to which the vertical characteristics of the side (usually Viti and perhaps Marvin in Anoeta) also contribute.
Panoramic in which you can see how Las Palmas gathers many footballers in its left field and empties the right to a greater extent. On the right wing, Sandro focuses to be closer to the area in case of a cross and the full-back Viti is in charge of the depth on the outside.
The Canaries are not averse to having possession of the ball and putting together many passes, but in recent weeks they have added more direct touches to their game. At the time of executing them, as we saw in the previous image of the Montjuic, Las Palmas match attracts pressure from his rivals by combining in his own areato then throw long to the forward or also to try to progress with the midfielders if the opponent allows it.
Las Palmas-Valladolid: the Canaries once again attract the rival’s pressure by releasing the ball. If in Montjuic they put it into practice using a 4-2-3-1, against the Pucelanos they execute it with a 4-4-2 with a diamond midfield to which Moleiro joins from the left wing.
Without ball
Las Palmas’ patterns are very defined, both in attack and defense. Diego Martínez’s team is very used to drawing without the ball a clear 4-4-2 which is drawn by change of location of Javi Muñoz: Moves from the midfielder to the first line to press in parallel with the center forward.
Javi Muñoz advances a few meters in Montjuic to press Barcelona in parallel with forward Fabio Silva, drawing a clear 4-4-2 on the pitch.
It is as true that Las Palmas has improved in defense with Diego Martínez as that Jasper Cillessen’s stops have saved the Canary Islands team on more than one occasion, during the last games. The aforementioned defensive 4-4-2 of the yellows, compact both in withdrawal and high-pressing phases, represents a strength and at the same time a weakness, since the opponents have been finding each other with some frequency double pivot back. For Real, it may be interesting to imitate the formulas that UD’s rivals have used when it comes to dangerously stepping into the space in question, the main one pointing to the movement inwards of one of the extremes.
Barcelona-Las Palmas: the two midfielders of the culé team attract the attention of the double pivot Campaña-Kirian, while Fermín López (blue circle) is located behind both yellow players.
Barcelona-Las Palmas: Campaña and Kirian continue to be conditioned by Barcelona’s two pivots. Raphinha (inside winger) and Fermín López (midfielder), both in the blue circles, will receive alone behind the Canary Islands midfield.
Las Palmas-Valladolid: a very recurring action is repeated during the previous day in Barcelona. Kirian and Esssugo are conditioned by the Pucela midfielders, which the Castilians take advantage of to connect inside with the interior movement of the winger Sylla (purple circle).
Beyond specific imbalances, a large part of the merit of coach Diego Martínez has resided in providing UD Las Palmas with a certain patience when defending. The yellows, despite the technical profile of their players, are capable of allowing long passing sequences to their rivals and then going on the counterattack after stealing the ball. The already seen 4-4-2 means the leading formation when containing adversaries and wait for the right moment to recover the ball and run. However, canaries are also capable of retreating through a 5-3-2simply delaying one of the wingers and turning him into a winger. Let’s not rule out this last system against Real in Anoeta…
Sandro is delayed in Montjuic until he is part of the defensive line. The 4-4-2 with which UD Las Palmas had been containing the culés has just become 5-3-2.
Las Palmas is doing something right to have won seven games (including two in the Cup) in less than two months when before I did not know the victory since last February. La Real will face a complicated rival in Anoeta whose losses also represent, in a txuri-urdin key, a double-edged sword. They weaken the opponent, although at the same time they make it more unpredictable: Certain tactical factors of the Canary Islands’ football are very marked, but they may be modified by suddenly missing three regular starters.
