Real Madrid will be aiming to bounce back from their first defeat since January when they continue their 2024-25 La Liga campaign with a home match against Villarreal on Saturday night.
Carlo Ancelotti's side are currently second in the La Liga table, three points behind the leaders Barcelona, while a strong start for Villarreal has left the Yellow Submarine in third, only one point behind their opponents this weekend.
Match preview
Real Madrid boss Ancelotti will be demanding a response from his players this weekend, as Los Blancos were off the pace in their 1-0 loss to Lille in the Champions League on Wednesday night, with Jonathan David's penalty after an Eduardo Camavinga handball proving to be the difference between the two sides.
The defeat was the team's first in all competitions since January, and they also suffered disappointment in the Madrid derby last weekend, conceding a last-gasp leveller to Atletico Madrid, with the contest finishing 1-1.
Real Madrid have been far from their best this season, but they are still unbeaten in La Liga, with their last loss coming to Atletico in September 2023, and they are currently second in the table, just three points off leaders Barcelona.
A win over Villarreal on Saturday would leave everyone connected with the capital giants feeling a lot better about their situation, but another lacklustre performance and disappointing result would just put some pressure on Ancelotti considering the incredibly high standards that he has set.
Real Madrid beat Villarreal 4-1 at Bernabeu in the league last season, but they have only won one of their last six league games against the Yellow Submarine, who will certainly be the fresher of the two teams, having not been in action since their league contest at home to Las Palmas on September 30.
Villarreal finished eighth in La Liga last season, which will have to go down as a disappointment considering that they had been fifth twice and seventh twice in their previous four seasons.
The Yellow Submarine have not claimed a top-four finish since 2015-16, but they certainly look capable of pushing for that this season, with an impressive start leaving them third in the table, boasting a record of five wins, two draws and one defeat from their first eight matches to collect 17 points.
Marcelino's side have been victorious in three of their last four league matches, including their last two against Espanyol and Las Palmas, and they have found the back of the net on 17 occasions this term, which is the joint-second best attacking record in the division behind the leaders Barcelona (25).
Villarreal have conceded 15 times, though, which is the third-worst defensive record this season, so they will have to tighten up at the back in order to be serious challengers for a Champions League spot.
El Submarino Amarillo have won two of their last four league games against Real Madrid, including a 3-2 success at Bernabeu in April 2023, and they will be looking to take advantage of a possible Champions League hangover for the Spanish and European champions on Saturday night.
Team News
Real Madrid will again be without the services of their number one goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois due to a hip problem, meaning that Andriy Lunin will again feature between the sticks.
Despite being included in the squad, Eder Militao is a doubt with the thigh problem that forced him off against Lille, so Aurelien Tchouameni could be required in the middle of the defence against Villarreal.
Kylian Mbappe returned sooner than expected from injury to feature off the bench against Lille, and the Frenchman should now return to the starting side on Saturday, while Rodrygo is also expected to start, having not featured against Lille due to a slight issue that he picked up in the Madrid derby.
As well as Courtois, David Alaba and and Brahim Diaz remain out for the hosts, but Dani Ceballos has made a return to the squad after recovering from an ankle problem.
As for Villarreal, Willy Kambwala, Gerard Moreno, Juan Foyth and Alfonso Pedraza will miss out due to fitness problems, while Denis Suarez and Ayoze Perez are major doubts for the visitors.
Perez's absence would be particularly damaging, as the Spanish forward has been in excellent form this season, scoring six times in La Liga, but he is not expected to recover in time.
Alex Baena scored off the bench against Las Palmas last time out and should come into the XI, while there could be another start through the middle for Nicolas Pepe, who netted his first goal of the campaign last time out.
Real Madrid possible starting lineup:
Lunin; Carvajal, Tchouameni, Rudiger, Mendy; Valverde, Camavinga, Bellingham; Rodrygo, Mbappe, Vinicius
Villarreal possible starting lineup:
Conde; Femenia, Bailly, Costa, S Cardona; Akhomach, Parejo, Gueye, Baena; Barry, Pepe
We say: Real Madrid 2-1 Villarreal
Perez's expected absence will be a big one for Villarreal, and we are just backing Real Madrid here. It would not be a surprise to see the points shared, as Villarreal are a quality outfit, but Real Madrid should be able to bounce back from their surprise defeat to Lille in the Champions League.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
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