Football Season Guide

They say football is a game of two halves but for Las Palmas, their whole 2016/17 season was one of two halves. From topping the table after the first couple of weeks and challenging for Europa League qualification at the half-way stage, they ended up finishing in 14th. They took 25 points from their first 19 games but then collected just 14 more over the season’s second half, having taken their foot off the gas once survival from relegation was secured. One of the other explanations for their loss of form towards the end of the year was the decision of coach Quique Setien to announce he’d be departing in the summer, a move which left his players with little motivation to keep trying to impress him. Setien is now indeed gone and in his place has come Manolo Marquez, promoted from the B team. He may not be as experienced as Setien and he might not be as talented either but it should be a boost to Las Palmas to have a coach in place who is committed to the club and who the players know. For Marquez, one of his biggest challenges will be coping with the departure of star midfielder Roque Mesa, who has departed for Swansea City. He was the man who all things passed through in Las Palmas' possession-loving midfield, so could be a major loss. On the other hand, Las Palmas have hit the jackpot in signing Spain international Vitolo from Sevilla for the first half of the season. With Atletico Madrid unable to register the player until January due to their transfer ban, Las Palmas volunteered to take him on loan until then and will have a player who they otherwise couldn't even dream of affording on their books for the first half of the campaign. If Las Palmas decide to maintain the 4-1-4-1 formation they so often used last season then Vitolo will be a world-class presence on the wings and should more than compensate for the fact that the inconsistent Jese returns to PSG after his own loan spell came to an end.