Pre-Match Analysis

February 2, 2023

La Liga PREVIEW | Real Madrid v Valencia

After failing to score a goal in their last league match, Real Madrid will look to close the gap with Barcelona to 5 points when they face managerless Valencia today at the Santiago Bernabeu.

The draw with Real Sociedad in their outing meant further extending the gap with league leaders Barcelona. The goalless stalemate was marked by a lack of clinical finishing from Los Blancos who created a lot of chances but didn’t have the firepower to finish them.

Carlo Ancelotti’s men cannot afford to drop points anymore when they have an in-form Barcelona to catch up with. Surely, it stands now as an uphill task but the league is not over yet for the chasers.

Real Madrid have already beaten Valencia once this season, in the semi-finals of the Supercopa de Espana by edging past Los Che 4-3 in the penalty shootout.

Meanwhile, the Valencians approach this fixture after parting ways with their former first-team manager Gennaro Gattuso.

Currently sitting 14th in the league standings, Los Che are just one point adrift of the relegation zone in a season where they have seen hit new lows.

They have one of the worst away records in the league from the last year, during which they have won only three of their 16 outings on the road.

Valencia’s run in the Copa Del Rey also came to an end last Friday when they were by Athletic Club in a thrilling 3-1 encounter. Their fans have endured tough times because of their management for the past few years and this is set to continue for the future if they don’t have reshuffle.

Results from their last five matches in all competitions

Real Madrid:

D W W W L

Valencia:

L L D W L

Predicted XIs

Real Madrid (4-3-3): Courtois; Nacho, Militao, Rudiger, Camavinga; Kroos, Tchouameni, Modric; Valverde, Benzema, Vinicius Jr

Valencia (4-3-3): Mamardashvili; Foulquier, Comert, Diakhaby, Gaya; Musah, Guillamon, Moriba; Kluivert, Cavani, Lino

January 11, 2023

Real Madrid vs Valencia: Preview

Real Madrid and Valencia face each other in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday for a spot in the Supercopa de Espana final.

Carlo Ancelotti’s Real Madrid will aim to secure the title for a second consecutive year as a win on Wednesday would make them face either Barcelona or Real Betis in the final.

Los Blancos approach this match on the back of a frustrating 2-1 defeat away at Estadio de La Ceramica to Villarreal. Not many positives could be taken by Ancelotti and his managerial team in that match as his team lost ground against Barcelona in the La Liga title race.

Yeremy Pino opened the scoring for the Yellow Submarines just a few minutes into the second half, and the goal was equalised by Karim Benzema’s penalty strike in the 60th minute. Villarreal forward Gerrard Moreno’s penalty goal stood as the difference between the two sides.

Like their opposition, Valencia also suffered a defeat to Cadiz in the previous Laliga fixture. They are still carrying on their woes from last season, and while new manager Rino Gattuso have attempted to solve things there, the process is expected to be quite slow.

While it is tilted to be a close affair between these two old-school rivals, both teams will be looking to get ome above their opponents and set themselves up well for some early season silverware.

January 6, 2023

La Liga Preview | Villarreal vs Real Madrid

Current La Liga title holders Real Madrid aims to stretch their winning run to three consecutive league games in a row when they face Villarreal away from home on Saturday at El Madrigal stadium.

Real Madrid went to level points (38) with Barcelona at table-top after scraping past Valladolid in the previous matchday while the Blaugrana dropped points in the Catalan derby. Meanwhile, Villarreal occupies the 7th position in the league table after coming out with the bragging rights in Derbi de la Comunitat and moving to 24 points total.

MATCH PREVIEW

Villarreal lost their Europa League-winning coach Unai Emery this season to Aston Villa but the Yellow Submarine have kept themselves in the run, despite their problems.

Their recent action was in the Copa Del Rey where they routed FC Cartagena 5-1 courtesy of goals from Alex Baena, Arnaut Danjuma, Luis Morales, Samuel Chukwueze and Etienne Capoue.

They are in firm contention to qualify for Europa League football for next season as they are only three points behind 4th placed Atletico Madrid and a point off Athletic club who for now settle on 5th place.

As for Real Madrid, they will look to continue their stellar run over the home team, against whom Los Blancos have not lost since 2015 in away performances.

Although Real Madrid grabbed the three points at Valladolid, the performance was a lack-lustre one until Karim Benzema thumped home the penalty to sway the momentum in his side’s favour. Their recent clash was also in the Copa Del Rey where they again faced goalscoring issues to 4th tier Cacareno but a Rodrygo worldie helped them scrape past a shock.

Currently tied at the top with Barcelona, Carlo Ancelotti will need to rally his men in the right way to brush off the post-World Cup blues and stack themselves for an exciting title race. Three points at Villarreal will set the team’s tone perfectly before they gear up for a quick game run within a few days.

LAST FIVE RESULTS IN ALL COMPETITIONS

Villarreal:

W W W W W

Real Madrid:

W W W L W

TEAM NEWS

For Villarreal, star man Giovanni Lo Celso is set to be out of this fixture due to a hamstring problem.

Geronimo Rulli’s recent agreement with Ajax means he’s out of the team sheet. Pepe Reina is set to replace the Argentine in between the sticks.

Juan Foyth, Yeremi Pino, Dani Parejo are expected to start.

For Real Madrid, Dani Carvajal is out with a minor muscle issue. Lucas Vasquez is the man to cover for him in the right-back.

David Alaba. Ferland Mendy, Toni Kroos, Fede Valverde and Luka Modric are all set to return for this game.

PREDICTED XIs

Villarreal (4-3-2-1): Reina; Femenia, Foyth, P Torres, Moreno; Capoue, Parejo; Chukwueze, Baena, Pino; Danjuma

Real Madrid (4-3-3): Courtois; Vazquez, Militao, Alaba, Mendy; Modric, Tchouameni, Kroos; Valverde, Benzema, Vinicius

October 15, 2022

La Liga Preview | Real Madrid vs. Barcelona

One of the most awaited fixtures around the world, El Clasico is set to be played at the Santiago Bernabeu this Sunday evening.

Both Real Madrid and Barcelona have made an unbeaten start to their league campaign this season and quite interestingly at this point with 8 games played, both are tied on points (22) at the top of the table.

Despite being in formidable form last season, Real Madrid suffered a humiliating defeat to a recovering Barcelona side at the Bernabeu. Manager Carlo Ancelotti will need to make sure his tactics and team are on point to avoid such a debacle and come away with the three crucial points from this venerable fixture.

In their last game, Real Madrid managed to continue their unbeaten in all competitions since the start of the season after Antonio Rudiger sacrificed his face to head home the equaliser against Shakhtar in the last minute of added time. Carlo Ancelotti rotated his team and kept the likes of Vinicius, Luka Modric, Dani Carvajal on the bench to rest them for El Clasico.

Despite Real’s woes against the Ukrainian giants, they progressed to the Round of 16 while being top of their group but for Barcelona, the group has been cruel to them like last season.

After drawing 3-3 in a hotly contested match against Inter Milan, Barcelona now face a potential relegation to the Europa League as they are now three points off R16 qualification. The Catalan outfit still has a chance to progress through to the knockout stages but if Inter grabs a win in their next UCL game against Viktoria, Xavi’s men will become a Europa League outfit for this season.

Team News

For Real Madrid, Dani Ceballos is set to remain on the sidelines with a long-term injury.

Race against time as Thibaut Courtois attempts to recover fully for the El Clasico after getting affected by Sciatica. Otherwise, Andriy Lunin is set to continue in between the sticks.

Antonio Rudiger has rejoined the team in training before El Clasico but Eder Militao is likely to get the nod over the German defender alongside David Alaba.

In form Toni Kroos, Luka Modric and Aurelien Tchouameni are set to retain their places in the starting lineup.

Fede Valverde is expected to start from the right flank replacing Rodrygo.

For Barcelona, Memphis Depay, Hector Bellerin, Andreas Christensen and Ronald Araujo are set to remain sidelined with long-term injuries.

Alejandro Balde is expected to replace Jordi Alba at left-back who is going through a sticky spell at the moment.

Jules Kounde is expected to start over Gerard Pique in defence alongside Eric Garcia.

Predicted XI

Real Madrid: Lunin; Carvajal, Militao, Alaba, Mendy; Modric, Tchouameni, Kroos; Valverde, Benzema, Vinicius

Barcelona: Ter Stegen; Roberto, Kounde, E Garcia, Balde; Gavi, Busquets, Pedri; Dembele, Lewandowski, Fati

October 10, 2022

Shakhtar Donetsk v Real Madrid | Preview

The current UCL holders, Real Madrid will set themselves up to continue their perfect win record in the Champions League as they visit Poland to face Shakhtar Donetsk in Matchday 4 of the top-flight European competition.

Both sides involved will face other only one week later of their previous matchup — which ended in a 2-1 victory for Real Madrid. In their defeat at the Bernabeu, Shakhtar showed tremendous character after conceding early and kept the scoreline respectable after last season’s debacle.

Real Madrid currently sits at the top spot in Group F of the Champions League with 9 points while Shakhtar secure second place with 4 points.

Carlo Ancelotti’s side will secure their qualification for the knockout stages if they come away with a win against the Ukrainian giants.

Team News

Shakhtar manager Igor Jovicevic is expected to name an unchanged eleven as his team has not been in action after their defeat at the Bernabeu.

Viktor Kornienko is the Ukrainian outfit’s only player to be out of this match with a long-term injury. Mykhailo Mudryk, Taras Stepanenko and the goalscorer in the last matchup between the two sides, Oleksandr Zubkov are expected to retain their places in the starting lineup.

Meanwhile, for Real Madrid, Karim Benzema got his much-needed rest to fully recover from a slight injury in Real’s last match against Getafe.

Goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois is set to be out of this fixture with Sciatica.

Dani Ceballos faces a long-term injury surrounding his hamstring.

Predicted Lineups:

Shakhtar Donetsk: Trubin; Taylor, Bondar, Matviyenko, Konoplya; Stepanenko; Shved, Bondarenko, Sudakov, Mudryk; Zubkov.

Real Madrid: Lunin; Vazquez, Rudiger, Alaba, Mendy; Camavinga, Tchouameni, Kroos; Rodrygo, Benzema, Vinicius.

October 1, 2022

Real Madrid v Osasuna | Preview and Predictions

Real Madrid will look to stretch their perfect record in all competitions since the start of the season as they return to action against Osasuna in Matchday 7 of the La Liga.

Los Blancos has the upper hand in this upcoming fixture after dismantling their rivals Atletico Madrid in their previous match while the visitors suffered a 2-0 defeat to Getafe in their last league outing.

Preview

Carlo Ancelotti will have the talismanic Karim Benzema back on the squad list who is expected to start from the bench. The attacking trio of Fede Valverde, Vinicius Jr and Rodrygo will look to continue their fine run of form after their exemplary outing in the Madrid Derby.

Real Madrid have scored at least two goals in each of their fixtures this season across all competitions and will look to continue their quintessential goalscoring form but at the same time, Real’s defensive vulnerabilities have been exposed owing them clean sheets in most of their wins.

Meanwhile, the visitors enjoyed an upright start to the season, sitting fifth in the league standings but the defeat to Getafe has left a bitter taste.

Despite their frailties in their last league fixture, they came back with a win, scoring two goals against Real Valladolid in a friendly match during the International Break.

Osasuna have managed to hold Real Madrid to two 0-0 draws in the last two seasons. But they have now gone 16 games without a win against the champions in all competitions since edging 1-0 in January 2011.

What to expect?

Real Madrid is expected to dominate possession as well as set the tempo of the game with the like of Toni Kroos starting. Luka Modric will be out of this match due to a muscle overload and Real’s sufferings are well known when the Croatian is absent. As Benzema is in contention to come on from the bench, the trio of Vini, Rodrygo and Valverde will need to establish a strong start in order to reduce the strain on the recovering Frenchman.

Osasuna have worked hard to sit fifth place and they always set up quite the force to destabilize the opponent’s midfield. Jagoba Arrasate will need to orchestrate his men to keep their cool after a hot-tempered clash against Getafe.

Prediction: REAL MADRID 2-0 OSASUNA

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Real Madrid have Chelsea where they want them: Can they finish the job?

Real Madrid look to finish the job against Chelsea at the Santiago Bernabeu
April 11, 2022

Real Madrid vs Chelsea FC | Preview

Real Madrid lock horns with current Champions League holders Chelsea in the second leg of the UCL quarter-finals

Real Madrid face FC Barcelona in another installment of El Clásico
March 20, 2022

Real Madrid vs FC Barcelona | El Clásico Preview

League Leaders Real Madrid face eternal rivals Barcelona in a feisty El Clásico with both of the teams coming to this match in stellar form

February 18, 2022

Real Madrid Vs Deportivo Alavés: Preview, Team News and MORE

After producing an awful performance against French giants Paris-Saint-Germain in the UEFA Champions League on Tuesday night, Real Madrid return to the Santiago Bernabéu tomorrow (19th February) to attempt and get back to winning ways. Los Blancos will square up against relegation-threatened Deportivo Alavés in their twenty-fifth matchday of the season.

Real Madrid failed to score a goal in their last two games and a ‘cowardice’ display in the Champions League have left Madridistas agitated with Ancelotti’s tactics and team selection. Ancelotti was caught in the act of tactical failure at the Parc des Princes by Florentino Perez, and speculation has since been rampant that Perez has put direct pressure on the Italian boss to turn things around soon to avoid the ‘sack’.

Alavés has not been in good form recently as they currently stand 18th in the league table, four points away from safety. With a win in their recent fixture versus Valencia (2-1), Babazorros El Glorioso has their confidence high to snatch all the three points from the Bernabeu and make two consecutive wins, the last which they achieved in October of 2021.

REAL MADRID TEAM NEWS AHEAD OF ALAVES CLASH

Real Madrid travelled with a fully fit squad to Paris and things are expected to remain unchanged on the squad list against the basque outfit. Karim Benzema and Vinicius Jr. are expected to start and use this ‘comfortable’ fixture to end their goal-droughts.

There had been questions over Mendy’s fitness during the previous game and Marcelo or Miguel can be expected to start over him.

The fatigue was clear on the faces of Modric, Kroos and Casemiro in the midfield against the French side and Ancelotti may use this fixture to make heavy rotations and find the potential of his squad depth.

HEAD-TO-HEAD

  • Real Madrid have won 14 of their last 16 meetings with El Glorioso in Laliga losing their last home game in the compeition back in November 2020.
  • Alaves was succesfull in defeating Real Madrid in their last two away trips to the Spanish capital.
  • Los Blancos have won only three of their last seven home matches in Laliga, failing to score in three of those seven games.

PREDICTIONS

Real Madrid may seem in a little bit of trouble concerning form but they should be able to dispose of Alaves comfortably. Attackers Benzema and Vini are desperate to find a goal that may steer Ancelotti’s men to a victory.

REAL MADRID 3-1 DEPORTIVO ALAVES

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