Real Madrid will host Malaga in the Santiago Bernabeu for La Liga matchday 18. Los Blancos are coming into the match with redemption as the primary objective, as Zinedine Zidane’s men are coming off two straight losses after previously going 40 games unbeaten.
After the heartbreaking loss to second place Sevilla during matchday 17, Real Madrid maintains a one point lead over their rivals and also have a game in hand. Los Blancos are looking to turn the campaign back into their favor as they take on a disgruntled Malaga side, who are in 13th place. Manager Marcelo Romero’s team look like the perfect side for Real to regain form, as they have not won in their last three La Liga matches.
Information regarding the game can be found below.
Date: Saturday, January 21st, 2017
Time: 10:15am EST
Place: Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid
Team News
Zidane will once again be without Gareth Bale as the Welshman is still sidelined due to an ankle injury. Joining him will be James Rodriguez, Dani Carvajal and Pepe, as each is dealing with injury issues. Time will tell if Isco will be available, as he was on the team sheet for the match against Celta Vigo but was an unused substitute. You can find the full squad list below.
📝⚽✅ #RMLiga
— Real Madrid C.F. 🇬🇧🇺🇸 (@realmadriden) January 20, 2017
This is our our squad for tomorrow's LaLiga match against @MalagaCF_en.#HalaMadrid pic.twitter.com/h8tEthLG5a
Moreover, Malaga also has their fair share of absentees, as the Anchovies will be without striker Sandro Ramirez, attacker Charles Dias, as well as midfield man Zdravko Kuzmanovic. Defenders Weligton and Ricca will also not feature, meaning the defence continues to dwindle down for Marcelo Romero’s men. A full squad list can be seen below.
LINE-UP| @Keko_gontan returns to a line-up in which Demichelis makes his debut 👏💙 #RealMadridMálaga #VamosMálaga pic.twitter.com/vJQsw9UKHl
— Málaga CF English (@MalagaCF_en) January 20, 2017
Predicted Lineups
Real Madrid XI:
Navas; Danilo, Raphael Varane, Sergio Ramos, Nacho; Luka Modric, Toni Kroos, Casemiro; Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema, Lucas Vazquez
Malaga XI:
Kameni; Roberto Rosales, Demichelis, Mikel Villanueva, Juan Carlos; Ignacio Camacho, Pablo Fornals, Duda; Gonzalo Castro, Adalberto Penaranda, Michael Santos
Furthermore, while Malaga has never won against Real Madrid in the league at the Santiago Bernabeu, big hearts must be shown as this is the only time Real Madrid have looked shaky in well over a year. Another loss would be a cause for crisis in the Spanish capital, while Malaga is looking to overcome a losing streak that saw them drop to 13th in the table. All in all, look for a strong performance from both teams, as each squad has something to play for, other than pride itself.
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Match Prediction:
With the previous two losses weighing heavy on the minds of the Madrid players and fans, I expect the players to come out firing in front of the home crowd. Los Blancos will win this one handily 3-0 witha penalty from Ronaldo and a couple of goals from Karim Benzema.