The Unión Deportiva Las Palmas returns to the First Division after an agonizing draw against Alavés

Delirium has taken over the streets of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria with the long-awaited return five years later to the First Division of Unión Deportiva Las Palmas, which accompanies Granada CF in the ascent as second place. The team led by Xavier García Pimienta will thus play its 35th season in the main category next year after a 0-0 draw with Deportivo Alavés, a faithful reflection of the nervous and irregular end of the season for the local team. Deportivo Alavés has not managed to complete its final sprint —both in the year and in the game itself— and will have to play the semifinal of the final promotion league against Éibar. Levante and Albacete will complete the other semifinal.

The match played at the Estadio de Gran Canaria was the antithesis of the comfortable victory that Granada CF achieved in their fiefdom against Leganés (2-0). The match played on the island was gray, irregular and stuck, with more euphoria in the stands and the surrounding area than on the pitch. Nerves and mistakes were the predominant trend for most of the game: static, with little depth on both teams. The local team had more control of the ball throughout the match, especially in the first half, in which there were only three scoring chances.

The resumption gave a point of intrigue to the game. The ball continued under the control of Xavier García Pimienta’s box, yes. But it was an inert domain. It was Alavés, in fact, who found himself with the most assets. Álvaro Valles, the Andalusian goalkeeper for UD, became a giant in minute 62 when he beat Asier Villalibre one-on-one when he stood alone. It was followed by another three consecutive occasions for the people of Vitoria, which led to inaccuracies and nerves on the Canarian playing field. The ghost of the match against Córdoba in 2014 was back on the pitch and in the stands, an almost complete promotion that UD lost in the 93rd minute with a pitch invasion included.

Alavés, thus, took a step forward in the contest in the last minutes, harassing the local area with continuous pumping into the area, with more intention than result and a tireless Rioja down the left wing. UD defended themselves in the best way they know how, trying to keep the ball at their feet, with hardly any aspirations of reaching the area. The agony in the stands lasted until the 96th minute. The final whistle brought euphoria. 17 tie of the yellows, some tables that are worth the pass to First.

UD Las Palmas has played two seasons in one. Until the winter break, the team showed goalscoring solvency, especially away from home. With the turn of the year, however, doubts began. Viera’s physical condition, defensive doubts and the inability to close games they had won became common currency. Criticism worsened in the environment, and the local press even came to consider the dismissal of García Pimienta, who is accused of not being able to vary the game script. On the positive side, the figure of ex-Barcelona player Sandro Ramírez emerged, with seven crucial goals that allowed the yellow team to reach the final day in second position despite continuous setbacks

“This ascent is much more special than the first one”, assured the local captain, Johnatan Viera. “Here the one who does not try fails”, he sentenced. “We all deserved it,” said Kirian Rodríguez, a player who this year has managed to overcome Hodgkin’s lymphoma and has completed the promotion of his team. “We had an idea and we were going to go to the death until the end,” said coach García Pimienta at the end of the game. “This team only knows how to play one way, and we’ve done it. The waiting was worth it”.

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