Arrasate: Mental strength key as Mallorca slip into relegation zone
Mallorca boss Jagoba Arrasate highlights emotional resilience as crucial after Real Betis counterattack leaves his side in the drop zone following 2-1 defeat.
Mallorca have found themselves in a proper pickle after Sunday’s 2-1 home defeat to Betis saw them slip into the relegation zone, with manager Jagoba Arrasate pointing to emotional resilience as the key factor for survival.
Caught on the break
Arrasate had spent all week drilling into his players the dangers of Betis’ counter-attacking threat, but his warnings fell on deaf ears as the visitors struck twice on the break at Son Moix.
“By moments we’ve fed them,” Arrasate lamented post-match, acknowledging his side’s failure to maintain positional discipline against a Betis side that’s absolutely lethal when given space to run into.
The Mallorca gaffer noted that Manuel Pellegrini’s Betis had recently tweaked their approach, defending in a mid-block before springing forward with devastating pace – exactly the gameplan that undid the islanders on Sunday.
VAR controversy
There was a touch of controversy too, with Mallorca feeling aggrieved over a potential penalty for Vedat Muriqi that wasn’t given. More surprising for Arrasate was the booking his striker received in the incident.
“That he gets booked, with everything we’re seeing this matchday and throughout the league… well, there you go,” the coach remarked with thinly-veiled frustration.
Relegation dogfight
The result couldn’t have come at a worse time for Mallorca, with both Rayo Vallecano and Valencia securing vital wins to climb out of trouble while pushing the Balearic side into the bottom three.
Arrasate believes survival will hinge on both footballing quality and mental fortitude:
- Maintaining emotional balance will be crucial
- Not getting too low after defeats
- Not thinking a single win solves everything
- Recognizing there are still enough matches to turn things around
Tough fixture run
The coach pointed to Mallorca’s brutal recent schedule as a contributing factor to their predicament, having faced three Champions League teams and one Europa League side in their last five matches.
“It’s not an excuse, but it does influence things,” Arrasate noted, as he tries to rally his troops for the relegation battle ahead.
With the business end of the season approaching, Mallorca will need to find their bottle sharpish if they’re to avoid the drop to the second tier.