Real Madrid: 3 things to watch against Eibar on Matchday 14

Real Madrid will travel to the Ipurua on Sunday night to face Eibar, looking for their fifth straight victory in all competitions.

Ever since their 2-0 loss to Shakhtar Donetsk that put Zinedine Zidane on the hot seat, Real Madrid have been in marvelous form. They look like the team that won its 34th La Liga title this summer, as the players are all fighting hard for Zidane and looking to prove that they are still among Europe’s elite.

Let’s take a look at three things for Madridistas to watch this Sunday at the Municipal de Ipurua.

Possible Martin Odegaard return

Eden Hazard has returned to training, but I think it is in Real Madrid’s best interest to allow the Belgian as much time as possible to recover. I still don’t believe we will see Hazard back in the XI until January.

But another star attacker is back in training in Martin Odegaard, whose suffered a couple of injuries this season. Odegaard has been effective when healthy, including in the Champions League against Inter Milan, but we haven’t even scratched the surface on how good Odegaard can be for Los Blancos.

Perhaps Odegaard gets 15 minutes or so to shine at the end of the match at Eibar, depending on how things go. Madridistas should look forward to his return to the pitch, because he can be a difference-maker both in 2020-2021 and future seasons.

Another brace from Karim Benzema

Karim Benzema struck twice at the Ipurua last season, and he has grabbed two goals in each of the last two mid-week contests against Borussia Monchengladbach and Athletic Club. So Madridistas should be excited for what Benzema can do this Sunday night at Eibar.

An in-form Benzema is crucial to Real Madrid. He scores nearly one-third of Real’s goals and has done so quite consistently since Cristiano Ronaldo’s departure to Turin. Benzema, of course, offers more than the goals, but since so few players on Real Madrid can offer a real scoring threat, the goals are the headline-makers for the No. 9 right now.

Expecting another brace from Benzema is a little too much, but I think it’s realistic for him to find the back of the net a couple of times against the mid-table side. Though this year’s trip to the Ipurua will not be as easy as last season’s, given there most likely won’t be Hazard.

A clean sheet for Real Madrid

Elche, Getafe, and Eibar are the only three clubs with fewer than 10 goals scored this season, as Eibar have found the net just nine times in 13 games, undermining what has been a very good defensive performance from them.

That should be music to Thibaut Courtois’ ears. He has given up just one goal in the last four games, producing clean sheets at Sevilla and against Borussia Monchengladbach and Atletico Madrid. On Tuesday night, Athletic Club managed to stick one past Courtois, but only after Sergio Ramos’ mistake and after Courtois had parried the first effort. Courtois then saved the game with a point-blank stop, which directly led to a goal at the other end for Benzema to make it 3-1.

Courtois shouldn’t feel threatened by any of Eibar’s players. They have only two players with multiple league goals this season, and one of those players is a defender. Kike Garcia’s three goals make him the team’s most consistent scoring threat, as he is the only player averaging more than two shots per game, according to WhoScored.com.

It would be a surprise if Eibar is able to beat this Real Madrid defense and their world-class man between the sticks.