FC Barcelona will play the first game of 2024 far from home as they will be visiting Gran Canaria for the La Liga match against Las Palmas.
This match for the 19th matchday of La Liga 2023-24 will take place on January 4th, after which Xavi’s men will kick off their Copa del Rey and Spanish Super Cup campaigns.
Barcelona are clearly the favourites in this match, as they have a squad vastly superior to the one available to Garcia Pimienta. However, Barcelona’s history of playing in this area of Spain will also boost the team’s morale going into this match.
Barcelona last visited Gran Canaria six years ago, for a match that ended in a 1-1 draw. Messi and Calleri were the scorers in that match.
But Barcelona’s history of winning in the Canary Islands goes a lot farther, as SPORT reports that it has been thirty years since Barcelona last lost a match there.
In that time, the Catalans have played 13 games in the region, without losing any of them. Ten of these games ended in a win for Barcelona, while the other three were draws.
The last time that Barcelona fell to a defeat to Las Palmas at their home was in 1991, in the first leg of the Round of Sixteen of the domestic cup.
Alexis Trujillo, scored the lone goal for Las Palmas in that match, but the Catalans won the return leg with a 6-0 score to ensure their presence in the ensuing round.
However, despite this historical dominance in the Canary Islands, Barcelona will have to be wary of the match coming ahead. Garcia Pimienta’s has been one of the revelation teams this season, and have not lost a match at home since October when they fell to a 1-0 defeat to Rayo Vallecano.
Las Palmas are currently placed 9th on the league table, but their performances have improved significantly lately after a poor start to the season saw them lose four and draw another two of their first seven matches.
Pimienta also showed a special desire to beat Barcelona ahead of this match, and Barcelona will have to be at their best to get a victory in this match.
