Celta Vigo will look to stop Real Madrid’s march to the La Liga title when they host the Spanish giants this Saturday.
Venue: Estadio de Balaídos (Vigo)
Key Statistics
Celta Vigo are unbeaten in their last six home games (W4, D2).
The hosts have just one win from their last six games (D3, L2).
They have now conceded 2+ goals each time Madrid have visited in the league (D1, L6).
Real Madrid have conceded just 12 goals away from home in the La Liga this season.
They have won five of their last six games (L1).
Karim Benzema had netted eight times in five games for Madrid—all after the hour-mark.
Head to head
Real Madrid are unbeaten against Celta Vigo since May 2014. They have won 13 times and drawn two of the 15 games they have played in that period.
Latest performances in all competitions
Celta Vigo: D-L-W-L-D
Real Madrid: L-W-W-W-W
Celta Vigo
Celta Vigo will look to get their first win in three games when they welcome league leaders Real Madrid to the Abanca-Balaidos stadium on Saturday evening.
Eduardo Coudet’s side sit in 11th place in the Spanish Primera standings and enter this tie off the back of a goalless draw against Real Betis in week 29.
With one win in their last six matches, the hosts will be more eager to get back to winning ways as they seek to chase down a European spot with just 12points separating them and sixth-placed Real Sociedad.
However, their quest for a place in Europe has been hampered by a poor goal scored and conceded ratio. Los Celestes have the second-worst goal difference among the teams in the top half of the table, and they come up against the highest-scoring team in Spain.
Although they will count themselves fortunate that they will be facing a Real Madrid side with a lot of tired legs due to the International break and a crunch upcoming Champions League tie against Chelsea, which may cause manager Carlo Ancelotti to rotate his squad.
With their providential advantage in mind, Celta will be wary to avoid a repeat of the reverse fixture where they were hammered 5-2, despite taking the lead twice in the first half.
With a clean bill of health, Eduardo Coudet has a real chance to exact revenge on Los Blancos, with Celta having failed to overcome their opponents in their last five games.
Possible Celta Vigo starting line-up
Matias Dituro; Hugo Mallo, Joseph Aidoo, Nestor Araujo, Javi Galan; Fran Beltran; Brais Mendez, Denis Suarez, Franco Cervi; Santi Mina, Iago Aspas.
Injured: None
Doubtful: None
Suspended: None
Real Madrid
Real Madrid will look to get back to winning ways when they travel to Vigo this Saturday. The visitors suffered a 4-0 in the El Classico before the international break.
Despite their loss to arch-rivals FC Barcelona, they sit comfortably in the first position, nine points ahead of second-placed Sevilla.
Also, since bringing back Carlo Ancelotti, Madrid have looked like a better outfit under the Italian tactician who found a way to bring out the best in some underperforming stars.
The Italian coach was heavily criticised for his role in the loss to Barcelona, and must now find a formula to steer Los Blancos through the turbulent waters ahead.
With a double legger against Chelsea coming up, the former AC Milan and PSG boss will be forced to rotate his squad for the upcoming games and this will provide an opportunity to give minutes to fringe players and stars alike to fight for a place in the team.
Meanwhile, the return of both Ferland Mendy and Karim Benzema to full training will be music to the ears of Carlo Ancelotti. With a full house, Los Blancos will fancy their chances of emerging from this tie against Celta Unscathed as they continue to fight on two fronts.
Eden Hazard remains the only absentee for this game. The Belgian underwent surgery to remove an osteosynthesis plate from his right fibula and will be out for six weeks.
Possible Real Madrid starting line-up
Courtois; Dani Carvajal, Eder Militao, David Alaba, Ferland Mendy; Luka Modric, Edouard Camavinga, Toni Kroos; Rodrygo, Vinicius Junior, Karim Benzema.
Injured: Eden Hazard
Doubtful: Luka Jovic
Suspended: None
Prediction
Celta 1-3 Real Madrid
