La Liga team without 17 players for game after coffee trip made them miss flight

La Liga club Las Palmas were forced to deal with a bizarre issue before their match against Sevilla on Sunday when 17 players in their squad missed their flight. The Spanish outfit were due to fly to Madrid en route to their weekend clash at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan before their travel plans were thrown into disarray, when more than half of their playing squad were left behind at the airport.

Officials for the club were left scrambling to arrange another flight when their first-team stars were left behind due to an ill-timed trip to a coffee shop. They had been waiting at Gran Canaria Airport in Las Palmas to board the plane when they decided to make a quick dash for a hot beverage.

A report from Spanish sports radio programme Carrusel Deportivo on Cadena SER claimed the contingent had got lost while searching for a cup of coffee. On their way back, however, they couldn’t find their gate and missed their departure time as a result.

Las Palmas do not boast a limitless pool of money like their Spanish rivals Real Madrid and Barcelona, and so the club had booked seats on a commercial flight. But due to the time constraints involved, they were forced to charter a private plane for the players left on the ground, which would have cost thousands of euros to hire.

The Gran Canarian-based club are accustomed to travelling by air for La Liga matches, as they are based on the island some 900 miles from mainland Spain. However, it seems some of their players were too relaxed about how much time they had before they were due to get on the plane. 

A post from the club’s official English language account on X , formerly Twitter, had even showed the players at the airport on Saturday with the caption: “We’re rollin’ to Gran Canaria Airport! Off to Seville, lads!” Alas, it proved to be an ominous post after their mix-up later in the day.

The club’s quick thinking in arranging another plane to take the stranded 17 players to Seville meant they had enough time to make the three-hour journey before the game, which kicks off at 6.30pm local time on Sunday. 

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It is hardly ideal preparation for Las Palmas coach Garcia Pimienta, who has endured a difficult start to life back in the top flight after guiding them to promotion in 2022-23. Las Palmas are yet to win in four matches this season and are currently 17th with two points.

They face a Sevilla side devoid of confidence after losing all three of their opening games so far this term, leaving them rock-bottom in the La Liga standings, with pressure mounting on Jose Luis Mendilibar despite winning the Europa League in May.

Las Palmas will be hoping their close shave at the airport does not distract them from a must-win clash against the struggling Andalusian outfit.

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