Las Palmas Seizes Momentum at Gran Canaria: García, Luković, and Clemente Propel Canarian Surge Past Eibar in Statement 3-1 Win
There was a sense of purpose in the cool Atlantic air as Las Palmas returned home with conviction, determined to make Estadio de Gran Canaria a fortress once more. The yellow tide swept past Eibar 3-1, a result that not only reasserted Las Palmas’s ambition in the Segunda División but also sent a sharpened message to the league’s upper tier: the Canarian club intends to be part of the conversation this season.
After a string of tightly contested matches, Las Palmas delivered their most complete performance of October. For 42 minutes, the hosts probed and pressed, searching for a crack in Eibar’s disciplined lines. The breakthrough arrived with a flash of brilliance. Ale García, whose energy has been a hallmark all campaign, found space on the left. Receiving a deft pass, he darted into the box and finished with clinical precision, slotting home to ignite the Gran Canaria crowd and tilt the match’s trajectory. García’s strike, his second in the last four matches, underscored his rising influence—a player whose development mirrors Las Palmas’s own surge.
Las Palmas extended their lead in the 66th minute, courtesy of Miloš Luković, whose introduction has brought added steel to midfield. Capitalizing on a defensive miscue, the Serbian timed his run to perfection, collecting a loose ball just outside the area. His composed finish doubled the advantage and left Eibar chasing shadows, their midfield unable to contain Las Palmas’s growing rhythm.
Eibar, sitting in 11th coming into the weekend, were no strangers to adversity. Their last five matches had yielded just one victory, a concerning trend for a side that had arrived on the island needing to halt a slow slip away from the playoff places. When Javier Martón clawed one back in the 83rd minute—bundled in after a rare lapse from the Las Palmas back line—Eibar glimpsed hope. The goal was a product of persistence, Martón reacting quickest in a tangle of defenders to keep the visitors alive.
But Las Palmas were not to be denied the closing act. As the clock ticked into stoppage time, defender Enrique Clemente, typically a bulwark at the back, pressed forward to deliver the final blow. Rising tall on a set piece, Clemente sent a precise header past Eibar’s keeper, restoring the two-goal cushion and sealing the points with a flourish. The stadium erupted, the home faithful sensing the importance of a result that lifted Las Palmas to fifth place on 15 points—a reminder of their upward trajectory after nine rounds.
The result was more than just a win; it was an affirmation of Las Palmas’s resilience. Their most recent five outings had shown both grit and growing maturity: draws at Granada and victories over Cadiz and Leganes had kept them in touch with the playoff chase, despite a narrow defeat to Almeria. There is a sense of momentum building, anchored by a defense that has now conceded just four in five matches, and attacking depth that is beginning to find its stride.
Eibar, meanwhile, are left to reckon with their own stalling progress. The Basques’ last five matches—a lone win against Real Sociedad II, draws with Castellón and Deportivo La Coruna, and losses at Ceuta and Cadiz—paint a picture of a side searching for its identity. With 12 points from nine, Eibar’s ambitions for a top-six finish have begun to look uncertain, their attack far too often blunted and their path to goal reliant on late surges rather than sustained pressure. Martón’s late tally reflected their fighting spirit, but the lack of consistent creativity in the final third remains a concern for manager Joseba Etxeberria.
Throughout the evening, tempers simmered but discipline held, with no red cards to mar the spectacle. The encounter, if occasionally fractious, showcased Segunda’s blend of tactical pragmatism and individual flair. Las Palmas’s efficiency in critical moments made the difference—capitalizing on Eibar’s errors, finding composure in front of goal, and closing out the match with authority.
While there is little recent head-to-head history of decisive encounters between these sides in the Segunda, tonight’s clash felt like a turning point, the kind that can reshape a season’s narrative. Las Palmas now find themselves within striking distance of the promotion places, buoyed by the form of emerging stars and a collective belief in their system. Eibar, by contrast, must regroup and rediscover the form that made them preseason dark horses.
With the league table compressing as autumn unfolds, every point takes on outsize significance. Las Palmas, reinvigorated and climbing, face a pivotal stretch where consistency could translate promise into reality. Eibar, bruised and reflective, return north to reconsider the formula that once made them a threat. In a season where margins are thin and ambition runs high, tonight’s result echoes far beyond the island, reverberating as both a warning and an invitation for the challenges ahead.