Real Sociedad vs Mallorca

Real Sociedad and Mallorca are set to trade tackles at Reale Arena in an exciting Copa del Rey last-16 tie.

Brimming with confidence following a stunning 3-1 home league win over bitter Basque rivals Athletic Bilbao at the weekend, Real Sociedad head into proceedings amid a purple patch. Imanol Alguacil’s men have won seven consecutive matches across domestic competitions in the build-up to this encounter, including all five since club football’s resumption in December. Conviction hasn’t been lacking either, with ‘La Real’ registering four multi-goal margin triumphs during that five-game sequence while keeping a clean sheet on four occasions. Having won each of their last six La Liga showdowns against Mallorca, including a narrow 1-0 home win earlier this season, the hosts will be confident about reaching the Copa del Rey quarterfinals.

In the meantime, visiting Mallorca have found themselves on both ends of a 1-0 scoreline in their last two La Liga outings (W1, L1), with the winning goal on both occasions coming in the second half. Scoring first is of paramount importance for Mallorca, considering each of their last eight competitive games (won/lost) has come ‘to nil.’ Seven of those matches have featured under 2.5 total goals, underlining the possibility of a low-scoring affair. Stretching back to 2004, ‘Los Piratas’ have lost ten successive visits to San Sebastian, all competitions included, failing to get on the scoresheet in the last seven in a row. It’s worth noting that four of those seven defeats yielded the same 1-0 full-time score.