Spanish champions Real Madrid will be bidding to return to winning ways in La Liga when they welcome European-chasing Rayo Vallecano to Bernabeu on Sunday afternoon what is shaping up to be an interesting fixture.
Los Blancos suffered a 2-1 defeat to Real Betis last weekend, and they are currently third in the La Liga table, three points off the leaders Barcelona, while Rayo are seventh, two points behind sixth-placed Real Betis.
Match preview
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Real Madrid suffered their fourth league defeat of the season in Seville last weekend, with ex-Los Blancos attacker Isco inspiring Real Betis to all three points, and it was a title setback for the capital giants, who sit in third spot in the table.
Carlo Ancelotti's side are two points behind second-placed Atletico Madrid and three points from leaders Barcelona, so it is not time to hit the panic button, but it is imperative that Los Blancos return to winning ways this weekend.
Real Madrid were in Champions League action on Tuesday night, recording a 2-1 win over Atletico in the first leg of their last-16 contest, with the second leg due to take place at Wanda Metropolitano next week.
The capital giants are also battling for success in the Copa del Rey, holding a 1-0 advantage over Real Sociedad ahead of the second leg of their semi-final at the start of April, so it is a crucial few weeks for the club.
Real Madrid's next two league games are also tough affairs, welcoming Rayo before heading to top-four chasing Villarreal, and Los Blancos have had trouble beating this weekend's opponents in recent history.
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Indeed, each of the last three league meetings between Real Madrid and Rayo have finished level, including a stunning 3-3 draw in the reverse game earlier this season.
Rayo also held Real Madrid to a goalless draw at Bernabeu last season, while they have an away league success over Los Blancos to their name, triumphing 2-1 back in January 1996.
Real Madrid's biggest-ever win over Rayo came in December 2015, when they incredibly recorded a 10-2 victory, but recent meetings suggest that this will be a much more difficult affair for the home team.
Los Franjirrojos finished 17th in La Liga last season and have never ended a top-flight campaign higher than eighth, so there is history on offer this season, with Inigo Perez's side currently seventh, just two points behind sixth-placed Real Betis in the battle for a European finish.
Rayo will enter this match in disappointing form, though, only picking up one point from their last three matches, losing to Barcelona and Villarreal before drawing 1-1 with Sevilla last time out.
Perez's team have been impressive on their travels this term, picking up 17 points from 13 matches, but Real Madrid are the second-best home team in La Liga, claiming 31 points from their 12 league games in front of their own supporters.
Team News
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Real Madrid will receive a major boost this weekend, with Jude Bellingham available after a suspension, and the England international is an absolute certainty to be named in the starting XI on Sunday afternoon.
Eder Militao, Dani Carvajal, Dani Ceballos and Jesus Vallejo are all injured, but Los Blancos did not suffer any fresh issues in their Champions League clash with Atletico last time out.
There are concerns over Federico Valverde's fitness, and it would not be a surprise to see the Uruguay international rested for the first whistle here, but Kylian Mbappe is expected to start despite a recent dental issue which has impacted his last couple of performances.
Antonio Rudiger may also be rested, with David Alaba potentially coming into the XI, while Luka Modric and Fran Garcia could also be rotated into the side ahead of next week's second leg with Atletico.
As for Rayo, Raul de Tomas, Abdul Mumin, Randy Nteka, Isi Palazon, Sergio Camello, Unai Lopez and Jonathan Montiel are all out of the contest with fitness problems.
Jorge de Frutos, meanwhile, remains unavailable for selection due to a suspension, meaning that head coach Perez will be without a whole host of important players for the game at Bernabeu.
Sergi Guardiola and Aridane Hernandez are expected to be introduced into the XI following the issues that Nteka and Mumin suffered in the first half of the team's 1-1 draw with Sevilla last time out.
Real Madrid possible starting lineup:
Courtois; Vazquez, Asencio, Alaba, F Garcia; Modric, Tchouameni, Bellingham; Rodrygo, Mbappe, Vinicius
Rayo Vallecano possible starting lineup:
Batalla; Ratiu, Lejeune, Hernandez, Chavarria; Diaz, Cisse; Embarba, Trejo, A Garcia; Guardiola
We say: Real Madrid 2-0 Rayo Vallecano
Rayo have been excellent this season, but the visitors will be missing so many important players this weekend - a full-strength Rayo side could have made this very difficult for Real Madrid, but taking into account their availability issues, we are fully expecting Los Blancos to record a routine home victory on Sunday afternoon.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Matt Law
