As the La Liga season nears completion, multiple clubs will be fighting against league relegation heading into next season.
One of those teams is Spain's RCD Mallorca. Playing in the First Division for the past 16 seasons, Mallorca will need a win and some help Saturday if they're to remain in La Liga for the 2013-2014 campaign.
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The task to remain among the elite becomes more difficult upon news that Mallorca star Giovani Dos Santos will not be with the team when they take on Real Valladolid. A member of the Mexican national team, the 24-year-old midfielder will be prepping for Mexico's Friday friendly against Nigeria.
An agreement between Mallorca and the Mexican national team that would allow Dos Santos to finish the La Liga season and give his squad a better chance to succeed was never reached.
Although he understands the clubs predicament, Mexican national director Hector Gonzalez Inarritu notes that Dos Santos is not the only player missing important matches.
"I understand the team's position" Inarritu said to ESPN. "It is complicated for them. I understand that this is a way to apply pressure. But Javier Aquino and Andres Guardado are here and they are playing in important matches."
Aquino and Guardado play for Villareal and Valencia respectively, and while both would love to be supporting their main clubs, the allegiance heading into next season is with the national team as they begin preparations for the upcoming World Cup, set to begin in June 2014 from Brazil.
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Inarritu never backed off his demands that Dos Santos be with the Mexican squad this week, even writing a letter to FIFA urging Mallorca to release the superstar.
Noting that even if the Spanish club did stay in the top league by winning Saturday with Dos Santos on the field, they could face penalties for utilizing him and not releasing him to the National squad since FIFA rules indicate a player must return to their home team four or five days prior to international qualifying matches.
Mallorca faces a tough test Saturday against Valladolid, and while a win would surely help them in their quest to compete in La Liga for a 17th-consecutive season heading into next year, the club will also need a handful of teams to fall over the weekend.
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In addition to a victory, Mallorca will need losses from Zaragoza, Deportivo La Coruna and Celta Vigo if they're to remain on the highest level of competition. Any other scenario would drop the Spanish club down a division for the first time since 1997.
Not happy about playing without one of the club's top talents, Mallorca president Lorenzo Serra Ferrar voiced his displeasure regarding the situation.
"Things like this don't happen in Barcelona or Madrid," he said to Goal.com. "We have to think positive and give all our support to the players who will be on the pitch Saturday."
Mallorca's contest with Real Valladolid is set for June 1 at 3 p.m., EDT.
See the top 10 goals scored by Giovani Dos Santos below.
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