Fresh from their elimination in the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey, Real Sociedad will resume their La Liga campaign with a trip to a struggling Las Palmas outfit on Sunday afternoon.
Real Sociedad are 10th in the La Liga table, boasting 38 points from their opening 29 matches of the campaign, while Las Palmas sit 19th, one point behind 17th-placed Alaves in the battle to remain in the division.
Match preview
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Real Valladolid have been cut adrift at the bottom of the division, but there are only five points separating 19th and 15th in Spain's top flight, with a fierce battle currently taking place to escape the dreaded relegation zone.
Las Palmas are the team in 19th, with a total of six wins, eight draws and 15 defeats from 29 matches bringing them 26 points, which has left them one point behind 17th-placed Alaves on the same number of games.
Diego Martinez's side have avoided defeat in three of their last four league encounters, but they have not been victorious in Spain's top flight since before the winter break.
Las Palmas will enter this match off the back of a 1-1 draw with Celta Vigo, while they played out a 2-2 draw with Alaves in their last match in front of their own supporters in the middle of March.
Pio Pio have only picked up 14 points from their 14 home league matches this season, while Real Sociedad have 15 points to show from their 14 away league matches during an underwhelming 2024-25 campaign.
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Real Sociedad were involved in a spectacular 4-4 draw with Real Madrid earlier this week in the second leg of their Copa del Rey semi-final, but it was not enough for them to advance to the final, with Los Blancos triumphing 5-4 on aggregate.
Imanol Alguacil's side were 2-1 winners over Real Valladolid in La Liga last weekend, but the Basque team are currently down in 10th spot in the table, only picking up 38 points from their 29 league games this term.
La Real are currently nine points behind sixth-placed Real Betis, while they are 15 points off Athletic Bilbao in fourth, so it is incredibly difficult to imagine any European football being secured for next season.
Star man Martin Zubimendi is set to move on during this summer's transfer window, with Arsenal the favourites for him, but Real Madrid are also believed to be giving serious consideration to attempting to sign the Spain international.
Zubimendi's departure will bring in valuable funds, though, and Real Sociedad's squad is certainly in need of a some fresh impetus, as a number of players have found it difficult to show consistent form during the 2024-25 campaign.
Team News
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Las Palmas may be forced to make a change between the sticks on Sunday, as Jasper Cillessen is a doubt with the issue that forced him off the field in the first half of the contest with Celta Vigo last time out.
Dinko Horkas is on standby to feature in goal, while Benito Ramirez and Kirian Rodriguez are also unavailable for selection.
Sandro Ramirez started on the bench against Celta Vigo but is set to return to the starting side on Sunday, while there will be another spot for Fabio Silva, who has scored eight times for Las Palmas in La Liga this season.
As for Real Sociedad, Ander Barrenetxea will be back in the squad after serving a La Liga suspension, but Sheraldo Becker, Arsen Zakharyan, Jon Pacheco and Brais Mendez are set to again miss out with injury issues.
Nayef Aguerd was forced off in the first half of the Copa del Rey semi-final second with Real Madrid due to an injury, meanwhile, and he is unlikely to be available for selection this weekend.
Mikel Oyarzabal is enjoying a strong campaign despite the team's struggles, scoring 14 times and registering seven assists in 44 appearances, and the Spain international should continue through the middle for La Real.
Las Palmas possible starting lineup:
Horkas; Rozada, Herzog, McKenna, Marmol; Munoz, Campana, Essugo; Sandro, Silva, Moleiro
Real Sociedad possible starting lineup:
Remiro; Aramburu, Zubeldia, Elustondo, Munoz; Kubo, Sucic, Zubimendi, Marin, Barrenetxea; Oyarzabal
We say: Las Palmas 1-1 Real Sociedad
Real Sociedad have not actually won away from home in La Liga since the start of December, so it is difficult to back them with any real confidence here; Las Palmas have their own issues, but we are expecting the home side to be good enough for a point this weekend.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Matt Law
