Real Madrid will be bidding to book their spot in the quarter-finals of the Copa del Rey when they head to fellow La Liga outfit Elche on Thursday night.
Los Blancos beat Athletic Bilbao to win the Spanish Super Cup on Sunday, while Elche will enter the contest off the back of a 1-0 victory over Villarreal in La Liga last time out.
Match preview
Elche have reached the last-16 stage of the Copa del Rey for the first time since the 2014-15 campaign, but they will have to be at their best to advance any further, having been drawn against the La Liga leaders.
Los Franjiverdes have had to win three matches to reach this stage of the competition, overcoming Leioa, Unionistas de Salamanca and Almeria, and they have actually been victorious in five of their last six games in this competition.
Elche have also triumphed in their last three games in all competitions, beating Almeria in the Copa del Rey on January 6 before recording back-to-back league victories over Espanyol and Villarreal.
Francisco's side have moved into 15th spot in La Liga due to their recent wins, five points clear of the relegation zone, so they will enter Thursday's match in good confidence despite their status as underdogs.
Elche will again face Real Madrid in the league this weekend, and the two recent meetings between the pair have been close affairs, with Los Blancos winning 2-1 on both occasions, while the points were shared in a 1-1 draw when they locked horns during the 2020-21 La Liga campaign.
Real Madrid added to their vast trophy cabinet on Sunday night by beating Athletic Bilbao in the final of the Spanish Super Cup, with Luka Modric and Karim Benzema on the scoresheet in Saudi Arabia.
Los Blancos are also top of La Liga, five points clear of second-placed Sevilla, while they will face Paris Saint-Germain in the last-16 stage of the Champions League, with the first leg of the fascinating contest set to take place in the French capital in the middle of next month.
Real Madrid have only had to win once to reach this stage of the Copa del Rey, recording a 3-1 victory over Alcoyano, with head coach Carlo Ancelotti rotating his squad for the contest.
The Whites have won this competition on 19 occasions but have not lifted the trophy since 2014, with other tournaments taking on more importance for the club in recent years.
Ancelotti will be targeting a clean sweep this season, but there is no question that the league and Champions League will again be viewed as more important to the capital giants, who have lost two of their last three matches in this particular competition.
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Team News
Elche could name the same side that started against Almeria in the previous round, with Pere Milla leading the line and Javier Pastore offering support from the number 10 position.
Kiko Casilla, Pedro Bigas, Gonzalo Verdu and Lucas Boye are also pushing to be involved in the squad following recent absences, with head coach Francisco needing to assess the fitness of his squad.
Ivan Marcone was only a late substitute against Villarreal in the league at the weekend but should come back into the starting XI for the home side on Thursday night.
As for Real Madrid, Marco Asensio is missing with a muscular problem, while Mariano Diaz could again miss out with a hamstring issue, but Gareth Bale is in line to feature after recovering from a back injury.
Dani Carvajal might be cleared to return following a positive COVID-19 test but is unlikely to start; Eder Militao, meanwhile, is definitely out of the contest due to his red card in the Spanish Super Cup final.
Ancelotti is expected to ring the changes on Thursday, with Andriy Lunin, Nacho, Marcelo, Federico Valverde, Luka Jovic and Eden Hazard among those in line to feature from the start.
Elche possible starting lineup:
Werner; Barragan, Roco, Gonzalez, Josema; Fernandez, Guti, Marcone, Piatti; Pastore; Milla
Real Madrid possible starting lineup:
Lunin; Vazquez, Nacho, Alaba, Marcelo; Valverde, Casemiro, Camavinga; Rodrygo, Jovic, Hazard
We say: Elche 1-2 Real Madrid
Elche will enter this match in good confidence, and they will not be taking on a full-strength Real Madrid side on Thursday night. It is difficult to back against Ancelotti's side at the moment, though, and we are expecting them to secure their spot in the quarter-finals of the competition courtesy of a narrow success.
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