Real Madrid will continue their preparations for the 2022-23 campaign with a pre-season friendly against Mexican side Club America on Tuesday night.
Los Blancos will enter the contest off the back of a 1-0 loss to Barcelona on Saturday, while America have taken on Chelsea and Manchester City in friendlies this summer, suffering 2-1 defeats in both fixtures.
Match preview
Real Madrid began their preparations for the new season with a 1-0 loss to Barcelona in El Clasico on Saturday night, with Raphinha scoring the only goal of the contest in Las Vegas.
Los Blancos will now take on Club America and Juventus in their final two friendlies of the summer before facing Eintracht Frankfurt in the UEFA Super Cup on August 10; Carlo Ancelotti's side will then begin their 2022-23 La Liga campaign with an away match against Almeria on August 14.
Real Madrid have only made two signings during this summer's transfer window, bringing in Aurelien Tchouameni and Antonio Rudiger, with both players starting against Barcelona, and Ancelotti has insisted that the club's transfer business ahead of the new season has been completed.
Los Blancos were too strong for the rest of the competition in Spain's top flight last season, boasting a record of 26 wins, eight draws and four defeats from their 38 matches to collect 86 points, which saw them finish 13 points ahead of second-place Barcelona.
Real Madrid ended the campaign by lifting the European Cup for the 14th time in their history, beating Liverpool 1-0 in the final, while they also had to overcome Paris Saint-Germain, Chelsea and Manchester City in the competition last term.
America, meanwhile, have faced both Chelsea and Man City in friendlies this summer, losing 2-1 to Chelsea on July 16 before going down by the same scoreline against Pep Guardiola's side four days later.
Millonetas have won their domestic title on 13 occasions, which is a record, placing them one ahead of Guadalajara when it comes to championships, and they are already four matches into their current season, picking up just four points with a record of one win, one draw and two defeats.
America opened their campaign with a goalless draw against Atlas before losing 3-2 to Monterrey on July 10; they then beat Toluca 1-0 on July 14 but will enter this match off the back of a defeat, losing 2-0 at Tijuana on Saturday, with Lisandro Lopez and Joaquin Montecinos on the scoresheet, which has left them in 15th spot.
Fernando Ortiz's side signed five new players ahead of their new season, with the standout addition being Jonathan Rodriguez, who led the line against Tijuana on Saturday.
America will relish the chance to take on Real Madrid in a friendly, but they also have an important league game against Leon on August 1, so head coach Ortiz will need to carefully manage the minutes of his players here.
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Team News
Real Madrid boss Ancelotti has confirmed that Karim Benzema will be involved against America, with the striker expected to play the full second half of the clash with the Mexican side.
However, there is unlikely to be a return for Dani Carvajal, with the Spaniard missing out against Barcelona in El Clasico due to an ankle problem that he picked up in training.
Ancelotti will make changes to the team that started against Xavi's side, with Luka Modric, Casemiro, Toni Kroos and Ferland Mendy all in line for starts, but Eden Hazard, Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo could continue as the front three.
As for America, there could be a change in the final third of the field, with Henry Martin potentially coming in for Rodriguez, with the latter potentially featuring off the bench in the second period.
Head coach Ortiz will make full use of his squad for this match, but the Mexican outfit will also want to give a positive impression of themselves, so a strong starting XI should take to the field.
There is likely to again be a spot in midfield for the experienced Jonathan dos Santos, while Alvaro Fidalgo is also expected to feature from the first whistle for the Eagles.
Real Madrid possible starting lineup:
Courtois; Vazquez, Militao, Rudiger, Mendy; Modric, Casemiro, Kroos; Rodrygo, Hazard, Vinicius
Club America possible starting lineup:
Ochoa; J Sanchez, Lara, Araujo, Fuentes; R Sanchez, Dos Santos; Zendejas, Valdes, Fidalgo; Martin
We say: Real Madrid 3-1 Club America
Real Madrid will be keen to bounce back from what was a disappointing result against Barcelona, and we are expecting Ancelotti's side to triumph on Tuesday. Benzema's return will boost Real Madrid, and we are tipping the Frenchman to get his name on the scoresheet for Los Blancos in a 3-1 success.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
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