UD Las Palmas bring Loiodice back into midfield

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De la Barrera has reinstated Enzo Loiodice in midfield for UD Las Palmas.
Iñaki González's suspension and Sergio Ruiz's injury mean the manager has to find a replacement for the left-back position against Valladolid.
De la Barrera has dismissed goalkeeper José Antonio Caro's criticism that there is a rift between the team and the fans.

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UD Las Palmas manager Rubén de la Barrera has revealed that Enzo Loiodice will return to his natural position in midfield, and has absolved the French player of any blame for the goals conceded at Éibar (3-2), where he had to play at left-back for the second week running.

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With Iñaki González suspended and Sergio Ruiz injured, Loiodice will return to his usual position in midfield, meaning the Galician manager will look for another option to cover the left-hand side of the defence against the Valladolid side.

De la Barrera warns that the white-and-violet side operate with a different structure to previous opponents, as they «pack the midfield and play without out-and-out wingers»; despite this, they «pose a threat in the box» in a different way.

UD Las Palmas: De la Barrera expects a response against Valladolid

Following two consecutive defeats and considerable concerns over the team’s performance, particularly in defence, the Galician manager is convinced that his side will bounce back, and this home match represents «a challenge and an incentive to get back to our best».

In that regard, he believes that the team’s first-half performance in their previous home match against Burgos is the benchmark they should use to assess themselves, even though they ultimately lost their lead following a poor second half (1-2).

«We’re on a run of form we’re not happy with, and we want to kick off a winning streak that will get us where we want to be. I can see the team is ready and making progress, and I’m convinced that on Sunday we’ll get a positive result,» predicts the coach from A Coruña.

De la Barrera disagrees with Caro over his relationship with fans

Meanwhile, De la Barrera has refuted the claims made by the yellow team’s goalkeeper, José Antonio Caro, who had publicly complained the previous day about a lack of unity between the team and the supporters.

«I haven’t been here long, but the issue of booing is something common to all sets of supporters, and I’m not so sure there is such a disconnect with the fans,» the Galician manager emphasised.