Chapter 131: Fear of Gain and Loss

"Alright, let's talk about that tall kid now... What do you think of him?" After comforting his old colleague, José clapped his hands and asked.

"He's very promising—physically strong and fearless on the field," Mesquida nodded approvingly. "His turning speed is slow, and his reaction time isn't the best, but those are things that can be improved through training. The youth team coaches have been working on his reflexes, and he's already shown some improvement. But what he really needs is more game experience. The youth team doesn't have many matches, and since I needed more players, I brought him up to the reserves. Defensive experience comes from playing, after all."

"That's a good approach," José agreed. "He's got the physicality and toughness—his only weakness is reaction time. With focused training and more experience, maybe in a year or two, he'll be ready for the first team... I'll leave his development in your hands."

José then turned his gaze to the field, where a young player was loudly directing his teammates, completely unfazed by the pressure. "Nadal only has a few years left, Nino is getting older and won't improve much, and Gamarra is already a veteran. Good center-backs are harder to find than good strikers. Maybe one day, Mallorca's defense will depend on him."

The player they were talking about, Matías, had no idea that his future was being discussed by the two coaches. He was simply enjoying his new team.

After passing the youth team's evaluation, he quickly gained the coaches' attention. The targeted training he received made him feel valued—something he had never experienced in any of the four Madrid-based clubs he had previously played for.

And the training paid off. He noticed a clear improvement in his reactions. Though the change wasn't dramatic, he could feel the difference. He firmly believed that as long as he kept refining his reflexes, he would no longer fear being outmaneuvered by skillful opponents. Then, after progressing from the youth team, he was promoted to the reserves. Even though he was only training with them, this was an incredibly exciting step for him!

He was still under a youth contract, not a reserve team contract, but the promotion was significant—if the youth team players were considered amateurs, then reserve team players had one foot in the professional world. The gap between them and full-fledged professionals was thin, but it was a step closer to his dream!

And the good news didn't stop there.

At the end of March, Mallorca's reserve team coach, Mesquida, called him into his office and informed him that the club wanted to offer him a professional contract.

Born in February 1984, Matías had just turned seventeen the previous month, making him eligible under Spanish regulations to sign a legally binding professional contract. However, until he turned twenty, the contract length couldn't exceed five years.

Five years. A professional contract. A weekly salary of 50,000 pesetas (roughly $260 or just under €200).

For Matías, this was a huge deal! His father was a construction worker in Madrid, and their family had sacrificed a lot to support his football career. Now, they could finally breathe a little easier—because their son was officially earning money from football!

For the newly 17-year-old Damián Matías, the future looked brighter than ever.

And for Mallorca, things were looking equally promising.

After successfully navigating a brutal stretch of fixtures, the schedule became much kinder. With only one game per week and no matches against the league's biggest teams—Real Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia, or Deportivo—Mallorca played with newfound confidence.

Despite the international break, the team's momentum remained intact. To be cautious, José benched Gamarra, Ronaldinho, and Eto'o, opting for a midfield pairing of Engonga and Motta, while Delgado returned to the attack. The changes didn't slow them down—Mallorca defeated Real Sociedad 2-1 in the 28th round, with goals from Luque and Ibagaza. Meanwhile, Valencia suffered a surprise away loss to Espanyol, allowing Mallorca to climb to third place!

Though finishing third or fourth both required going through Champions League qualifiers, being in third place was still a huge morale boost!

With this momentum, Mallorca became nearly unstoppable.

April 8, Round 29: Ibagaza opened the scoring, and Eto'o sealed the win late in the game. Mallorca secured a 2-0 away victory over relegation-threatened Numancia, making it three straight wins.April 16, Round 30: Ronaldinho, Motta, and Kaladze all found the net, leading Mallorca to a comfortable 3-1 home victory over Las Palmas.April 22, Round 31: Up against an impressive Villarreal side, Mallorca found themselves down 2-0 within six minutes, with goals from Argentine striker Palermo and Víctor. But in the second half, Ibagaza and Eto'o struck back to salvage a 2-2 draw. While the winning streak ended, the result was still valuable—it brought Mallorca level on points with Deportivo. Thanks to their superior head-to-head record (1-1 away, 3-1 at home), they overtook Deportivo and climbed to second place!

Although Real Madrid, currently on a three-match winning streak, extended their lead at the top to 11 points, Mallorca's position as the league's second-best team was a source of immense pride!

"I'm thrilled that we have the second-fewest losses in the league, and even prouder of our recent form. With seven matches left, our goal is to maintain this advantage and qualify directly for the Champions League group stage!"

José exuded confidence at the post-match press conference, but deep down, he was uneasy. He knew that Deportivo was about to launch a fierce comeback.

After being eliminated by Leeds United in the Champions League quarter-finals—marking the second consecutive year they had been knocked out of Europe by an English club—Deportivo suffered a morale-crushing defeat to Celta Vigo, which cost them second place. But with no more European distractions, they would now throw everything at Mallorca in the final stretch.

To hold onto second place, Mallorca had to at least match Deportivo's points tally in the remaining seven rounds. That was the absolute minimum.

Fortunately, Mallorca had a favorable schedule. Having already faced all of the league's top teams, their remaining fixtures were relatively manageable. Only three of their seven remaining opponents—Celta, Alavés, and Espanyol—were in the race for European spots. The rest—Zaragoza, Osasuna, Rayo Vallecano, and Málaga—were either mid-table or lower. Deportivo, on the other hand, still had to face Valencia, Alavés, Espanyol, and Málaga, making their path slightly tougher.

But José's biggest worry wasn't the schedule—it was his team's form.

Mallorca had gone seven matches unbeaten, with five wins and two draws. However, their latest draw signaled that they might be transitioning from peak form into a dip. If their decline coincided with the crucial final stretch, it could spell disaster.

With these concerns in mind, Mallorca hosted Zaragoza.

Zaragoza, who finished fourth last season, had given up their Champions League spot to Real Madrid. This decision seemed to have sapped their morale. Unlike Everton in the future—who would fiercely resist giving up their UCL spot—Zaragoza had obediently stepped aside. Their poor form this season saw them sitting 13th, just five points above the relegation zone.

Against such an opponent, Mallorca showed no mercy. Luque was unstoppable, scoring twice in the first half. Ronaldinho added another in the second half, and though Zaragoza pulled one back in stoppage time, it was too late. Mallorca extended their unbeaten run to eight matches, winning four in a row!

Meanwhile, Deportivo broke their pattern of alternating wins and losses by edging Espanyol 1-0 at home, staying right behind Mallorca.

José frowned. Deportivo was regaining form, while Mallorca was starting to decline. Luque's brilliance had bailed them out this time, but José didn't want to rely on individual heroics—he wanted control.

His fears came true in Round 32.

Mallorca fell 1-0 to a desperate Osasuna side battling relegation. Osasuna had gone 13 rounds without a win earlier in the season but had recently hit form. Having just beaten Barcelona and drawn with Real Madrid, they pulled off another shocker, with Iván Rosado scoring the winner.

Osasuna celebrated wildly, while Mallorca felt deflated.

To make matters worse, Deportivo salvaged a 1-1 draw at Rayo Vallecano, reclaiming second place by a single point. Valencia also crept closer, now just one point behind Mallorca.

The battle for second was heating up.