Spanish champions Real Madrid will be bidding to return to winning ways in La Liga when they head to El Sadar on Saturday to tackle Osasuna.
Los Blancos are currently top of the La Liga table, boasting 50 points from their opening 23 matches of the campaign, while Osasuna are ninth, collecting 31 points from their first 23 games of 2024-25.
Match preview
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Osasuna have a record of seven wins, 10 draws and six defeats from their 23 league matches this season, with a total of 31 points leaving them in ninth position, just four points behind sixth-placed Rayo Vallecano in the race for Europe.
Los Rojillos will enter this match off the back of a 1-1 draw against Mallorca, with Enzo Boyomo securing a point in the 94th minute of the contest after Vedat Muriqi had sent Mallorca ahead from the penalty spot in the 81st minute.
Vicente Moreno's side are now unbeaten in their last four league matches, with three of those ending in draws, but they were 2-1 winners over Real Sociedad in their last game in front of their own fans at the start of the month.
Osasuna finished 11th last season, but they were seventh in 2022-23 and have their eyes on a first top-six spot since claiming fourth in 2005-06, so there is plenty on offer in the final months of the campaign.
The Pamplona outfit are on a five-game losing run against Real Madrid in all competitions, including a 4-0 defeat when the two sides locked horns in the corresponding match at Bernabeu back in November.
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Real Madrid, meanwhile, will enter the match off the back of a 3-2 success over Manchester City in the first leg of their Champions League knockout round playoff on Wednesday night.
Los Blancos trailed 1-0 and 2-1 at the Etihad Stadium but answered back on both occasions to level, before Jude Bellingham came up with a last-gasp winner to put the reigning European champions in an excellent position ahead of the return fixture at Bernabeu next week.
Real Madrid have only picked up one point from their last two league games, though, losing 1-0 to Espanyol at the start of February before playing out a 1-1 draw with Atletico Madrid in the Madrid derby last weekend.
Carlo Ancelotti's side are top of the table, one point clear of second-placed Atletico and two ahead of third-placed Barcelona, and it is shaping up to be a fascinating race for the title in the closing months of the campaign.
Real Madrid have the second-best away record in La Liga this season, picking up 22 points from their 12 matches on their travels, but they have only won half of those fixtures, while Osasuna have the fifth-best home record in Spain's top flight this term.
Team News
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Osasuna are again expected to be without the services of Raul Garcia due to an ankle problem, while Boyomo is suspended due to the yellow card that he picked up shortly before scoring against Mallorca last time out.
Jorge Herrando is likely to be the player to benefit in terms of the back four, but head coach Moreno could otherwise name an unchanged side, with Bryan Zaragoza and Ruben Garcia in the wide positions.
Ante Budimir has scored 12 times in La Liga this season, and the experienced forward will again lead the line.
As for Real Madrid, Lucas Vazquez, David Alaba, Antonio Rudiger, Eder Militao and Dani Carvajal are all out through injury, but the capital giants did not pick up any fresh problems against Man City.
Head coach Ancelotti could name an unchanged side on Saturday, with Raul Asencio set to continue alongside Aurelien Tchouameni in the middle of the defence due to the absentees in that area.
Dani Ceballos is currently benefitting to enjoy a run in the side, and that is likely to continue this weekend, with Luka Modric potentially have to settle for more football off the bench on Saturday.
Brahim Diaz registered off the bench against Man City, but he is not expected to be considered for a start, with Rodrygo again set to feature alongside Kylian Mbappe, Vinicius Junior and Bellingham in the final third of the field.
Osasuna possible starting lineup:
Herrera; Areso, Herrando, Catena, Cruz; Ruben Garcia, Moncayola, Torro, Oroz, Zaragoza; Budimir
Real Madrid possible starting lineup:
Courtois; Valverde, Tchouameni, Asencio, Mendy; Camavinga, Ceballos; Rodrygo, Bellingham, Vinicius; Mbappe
We say: Osasuna 1-2 Real Madrid
Osasuna's home record this season must be respected, and Real Madrid have been far from their best on their travels - it would therefore not be a shock to see the points shared on Saturday night. That said, Los Blancos know the importance of winning due to the pressure from the teams behind them, and we are backing the champions to navigate their way to a win in this contest.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Matt Law
