Preview: Real Oviedo vs Mallorca - prediction, team news, lineups

Two struggling teams will lock horns in La Liga on Friday evening, with Real Oviedo welcoming Mallorca to Estadio Carlos Tartiere for an intriguing affair.

The hosts are currently bottom of the La Liga table, only picking up nine points from their first 14 matches of the campaign, while the away side are 16th in the division on 13 points.

Match preview

Real Oviedo boast a record of two wins, three draws and nine defeats from their 14 league matches this season, with nine points leaving them at the bottom of the division, while they have the worst attacking record in Spain's top flight with only seven goals scored.

Luis Carrion's side have not been victorious since a 2-1 success over Valencia at the end of September, and they have lost three of their last five games in all competitions, including a shock 4-2 reverse to Ourense CF in the Copa del Rey.

The Blues will enter this match off the back of a 2-0 defeat to Atletico Madrid, but they have managed to draw their last two league matches at home, holding Osasuna and Rayo Vallecano.

Real Oviedo have faced Mallorca on 47 previous occasions and have only managed to win nine times, with their last success in this fixture coming in February 2017 in Spain's second tier.

The promoted outfit have not beaten Mallorca in Spain's top flight since February 1991, though, which is an indication of the size of their task on Friday night.

Mallorca, meanwhile, were in Copa del Rey action on Tuesday, booking their spot in the third round of the competition courtesy of a 3-2 success over Numancia.

Jagoba Arrasate's side drew 2-2 with Osasuna in La Liga last time out, and they are currently in 16th spot in the table, boasting a record of three wins, four draws and seven defeats from their 14 matches to collect 13 points.

The Pirates finished 10th in La Liga last season, only four points off the European spots, but there is no question that the team has underperformed so far this term.

Mallorca have lost six of their seven league matches on their travels this term, but they will be heading to a Real Oviedo outfit that have the second-worst home record, having only managed to pick up five points from their first seven games in front of their own fans.

Real Oviedo La Liga form:

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Real Oviedo form (all competitions):

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Mallorca La Liga form:

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Mallorca form (all competitions):

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Team News

Real Oviedo will definitely be without the services of two players through injury on Friday, with Alvaro Lemos and Javi Lopez both unavailable for selection, while Brandon Domingues remains a doubt, but the squad will be boosted by the return of Ilyas Chaira, who was suspended for the clash with Atletico last time out.

Chaira is set to return to the starting side, but there should again be a spot in the final third of the field for the experienced Salomon Rondon.

Santi Cazorla was one of Real Oviedo's best performers in the defeat to Atletico, and the experienced attacker should keep his spot in the side on Friday.

As for Mallorca, Toni Lato and Leo Roman are doubts, but Dani Rodriguez will be back in the squad after missing the draw with Osasuna last weekend through suspension.

Head coach Arrasate will make changes to the side that took to the field for the first whistle against Numancia in the Copa del Rey, with Abdon Prats likely to drop out despite scoring twice in the 3-2 success on Tuesday night.

Vedat Muriqi has scored eight times in 13 La Liga appearances for Mallorca this season, and the experienced forward will continue in the final third of the field.

Real Oviedo possible starting lineup:

Escandell; Vidal, Carmo, Costas, Alhassane; Colombatto, Dendoncker; Vinas, Cazorla, Chaira; Rondon

Mallorca possible starting lineup:

Bergstrom; Maffeo, Valjent, Raillo, Mojica; Costa, Mascarell; Joseph, Darder, Virgili; Muriqi

We say: Real Oviedo 0-0 Mallorca

We are not expecting this to be a classic, and it is tough to pick a winner considering how both teams have performed this term. Real Oviedo have picked up points in three of their seven home league games this season, and we are predicting a draw on Friday night.

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