Real Madrid will be bidding to bounce back from their heavy defeat in El Clasico when they resume their La Liga campaign away to Celta Vigo on Saturday night.
Los Blancos are currently top of the table, nine points clear of second-placed Sevilla, while Celta occupy 11th position, two points behind 10th-placed Osasuna on the same number of games (29).
Match preview
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Celta have won nine, drawn nine and lost 11 of their 29 La Liga matches this season to collect 36 points, which has left them in 11th spot in the table, two points behind 10th-placed Osasuna heading into the next set of games.
The Sky Blues finished eighth in Spain's top flight last term after back-to-back 17th-place finishes, and they are only five points behind eighth-placed Athletic Bilbao at this stage, so it is not impossible to imagine them enjoying similar success this term.
Celta have only actually won one of their last six league matches, though, losing at Villarreal and drawing at home to Real Betis in their last two games.
Eduardo Coudet's side have been inconsistent in front of their own supporters this season, winning five, drawing four and losing six of their 15 matches to collect 19 points.
Celta have also lost each of their last three league games against Real Madrid, including a 5-2 defeat at Bernabeu back in September, while they have not beaten Los Blancos in La Liga since May 2014.
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Real Madrid, meanwhile, suffered a 4-0 defeat at home to Barcelona before the international break, with the result sending shockwaves around European football.
Los Blancos had been on a four-game winning run in the league before El Clasico, though, and they have plenty of credit in the bank, which should carry them to this season's league title.
Indeed, despite the defeat to Barcelona, Carlo Ancelotti's side are nine points clear of second-placed Sevilla and 12 clear of third-placed Barcelona, and it would be some collapse if they relinquished control of first position at the business end of the campaign.
Real Madrid have comfortably the best away side in Spain's top flight this season, picking up 32 points from their 14 matches, although they have lost two of their last five games on their travels in all competitions.
Ancelotti's side will certainly have one eye on the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final away to Chelsea next week, and it will be fascinating to see whether the Spanish giants can negotiate their way past the reigning European champions to reach the semi-finals of the competition.
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Team News
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Celta will be missing Hugo Mallo this weekend due to a knee problem, but Javi Galan and Franco Cervi are both available once again following suspensions and should start.
There are not expected to be any real surprises in the home side's XI this weekend, with Santi Mina and Iago Aspas featuring as the front two, while Brais Mendez should retain his spot in the side.
Jeison Murillo could be pressed into action at right-back due to Mallo's absence, but Fran Beltran should again keep out Renato Tapia to feature in the middle of the park.
As for Real Madrid, Eden Hazard is unavailable for selection due to a recent leg operation, but Ferland Mendy and Karim Benzema are both be fit following recent issues.
Los Blancos will be without Isco and Luka Jovic due to recent injuries, while Toni Kroos had been a doubt, with the Germany international being sidelined this week due to illness, but he is in the squad.
Ancelotti is unlikely to be on the touchline, having recently tested positive for COVID-19, but the Italian will be hoping to recover in time for the Chelsea match, and he will have one eye on the European contest.
As a result, no risks will be taken with Mendy and Kroos, but Benzema is expected to feature at centre-forward, with Rodrygo and Vinicius Junior in the wide positions.
Celta Vigo possible starting lineup:
Dituro; Murillo, Aidoo, Araujo, Galan; Beltran; Mendez, D Suarez, Cervi; Mina, Aspas
Real Madrid possible starting lineup:
Courtois; Carvajal, Militao, Alaba, Nacho; Valverde, Casemiro, Modric; Rodrygo, Benzema, Vinicius
We say: Celta Vigo 1-2 Real Madrid
This could be a really tricky match for Real Madrid, with Celta having a lot of quality in the final third of the field. We are fully expecting the home side to find the back of the net at some point, but the league leaders should manage to navigate their way to a hugely important three points.
Top tip
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Real Madrid win with a probability of 60.72%. A draw had a probability of 21.8% and a win for Celta Vigo had a probability of 17.5%.
The most likely scoreline for a Real Madrid win was 0-1 with a probability of 11.29%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 0-2 (10.8%) and 1-2 (9.9%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (10.35%), while for a Celta Vigo win it was 1-0 (5.41%). The actual scoreline of 1-2 was predicted with a 9.9% likelihood. Our team at Sports Mole correctly predicted a 1-2 win for Real Madrid in this match and our data analysis correctly predicted the win for Real Madrid.
