Las Palmas will start life back in La Liga with a home fixture against Mallorca on Saturday night.

La Union Deportiva secured a return to the top flight courtesy of finishing second in the Segunda Division last season, while Mallorca enjoyed an impressive 2022-23 La Liga campaign, claiming ninth spot.

Match preview

Las Palmas last competed in La Liga between 2015 and 2018, but they have spent each of the last five campaigns in the second tier of English football.

An impressive 2022-23 Segunda Division campaign allowed them to secure a return to the top flight, though, as they picked up 72 points from their 42 matches to finish second in the table behind Granada and ensure that they would be present in La Liga for the 2023-24 season.

Garcia Pimienta's side have been busy this summer in terms of the transfer market, with Sandro Ramirez, Munir El Haddadi and Daley Sinkgraven among those to arrive, while they have also signed defender Julian Araujo on loan from Barcelona for the 2023-24 campaign.

There have also been a number of departures, so there will be a fresh look to the squad this season, and survival in Spain's top flight will be their main aim.

Las Palmas have played six friendlies this summer, winning twice, while they will enter this match off the back of a 3-0 defeat to Bundesliga side RB Leipzig last weekend.

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Mallorca were impressive during the 2022-23 La Liga campaign, finishing ninth in the table, and they are preparing to play in their third straight season at this level of football.

The Pirates actually went through their pre-season unbeaten, drawing their last two against Sunderland and Spezia, so they will enter this match in good shape.

Javier Aguirre's side have made five signings this summer, with Cyle Larin, Siebe van der Heyden, Manu Morlanes, Omar Mascarell and Toni Lato arriving at the club.

There have also been a number of departures, Lee Kang-in the most high-profile of those, with the 22-year-old making the move to French champions Paris Saint-Germain.

In Larin and Vedat Muriqi, Mallorca have two players capable of hitting double figures in terms of goals in the league this season, and the team will have their eyes on another top-half finish this season.

Team News

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Mallorca will have debutants in this match, with Lato set to line up as the left-sided wing-back, while Van der Heyden is also set to come into a back five for the visitors.

New signings Morlanes and Mascarell could also be present in midfield, while it seems likely that Larin will get the nod in the final third of the field alongside Muriqi, who scored 15 league goals last season.

The home side have not reported any injury concerns ahead of this match, meaning that head coach Aguirre could have a full complement of players to choose from on Saturday.

Las Palmas have one player on the treatment table, with Fabio Gonzalez missing due to an ankle issue.

There are expected to be a host of new faces in the home side's XI, with Aaron Escandell in line to start between the sticks, while El Haddadi, Ramirez, Sinkgraven and Araujo should also be in the side.

Pejino and Jonathan Vieira both scored seven times during strong 2022-23 campaigns, and the pair are expected to be in the starting side for the opening match of the season.

Las Palmas possible starting lineup:
Escandell; Araujo, Lemos, Coco, Sinkgraven; Pejino, Loiodice, Viera, Ramirez; El Haddadi, Cardona

Mallorca possible starting lineup:
Rajkovic; Maffeo, Van der Heyden, Raillo, Copete, Lato; D Rodriguez, Morlanes, Mascarell; Larin, Muriqi

We say: Las Palmas 1-2 Mallorca

Las Palmas will know the importance of their home form this season, but this is a tough opener against a very impressive Mallorca outfit. The visitors have quality across the pitch, and we are backing Mallorca to open their campaign with a narrow success on Saturday night.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.

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