Real Madrid plays Villarreal tonight in their eighth La Liga match. Los Blancos hopes to recover after losing 5–2 to Atlético last weekend, which ended their unbeaten run in La Liga.
Real Madrid is second in the league, and Villarreal is third, trailing by just two points. Villarreal has won five of their seven league games. Recent clashes between the two teams have been close across the last eight league games; Madrid has won three, and Villarreal has won two, with three draws
Match Details
- Fixture: Real Madrid vs Villarreal CF
- Competition: Spanish La Liga, Matchday 8
- Venue: Estadio Santiago Bernabéu, Madrid (Spain)
- Date: Saturday, October 4
- Kick-off: 20:00 (GMT+1)
- How to Watch: beIN Sports 1 (MENA), ESPN+ (USA), Disney+ (UK), Movistar LaLiga (Spain)
Real Madrid Team News
Injuries: The home side has a few notable absences in defense. Right-backs Trent Alexander-Arnold and Dani Carvajal remain sidelined, along with center-back Antonio Rüdiger and left-back Ferland Mendy.
Eder Militão is back and available after recovering from the ankle sprain that forced him off in the derby.
Squad changes: Manager Xabi Alonso may tweak his lineup after the long midweek Champions League trip to Kazakhstan. Raúl Asencio will likely continue at right-back in Carvajal’s absence. In midfield, Jude Bellingham is expected to return to the line-up, Up front, the club’s top goalscorer Kylian Mbappé, is expected to lead the front line in tonight’s game
Predicted lineup: Courtois; Asencio, Militao, Huijsen, Carreras; Valverde, Tchouameni, Bellingham; Guler; Mbappe, Vinícius Junior
Villarreal Team News
Injuries: The Yellow Submarine has several players unavailable. Center-backs Logan Costa and Willy Kambwala, defender Juan Foyth, and young midfielder Pau Cabanes are all out.
Squad changes: Coming off a 2–2 draw with Juventus on Wednesday, Villarreal coach Marcelino could make a few tweaks. Playmaker Dani Parejo might start in the midfield with Thomas Partey.
In the attack, Tajon Buchanan Villarreal’s top scorer in La Liga with 3 goals will lead the attack alongside winger Nicolas Pépé and Georgian forward Georges Mikautadze.
Predicted lineup: Júnior; Mouriño, Veiga, Marín, S. Cardona; Akhomach, Partey, Gueye, Moleiro; Mikautadze, Pepe.
What to Expect
Real Madrid will be determined to win this game at home after last week’s 5–2 loss to Atlético. Before that, they won six straight league matches. Mbappé – who has scored 13 goals in nine games this season – will lead the attack as Los Blancos aim to show that the derby defeat was just a slip.
Villarreal comes to this match in strong form, having won their last three La Liga games. Marcelino’s team is quick on the wings and dangerous on counterattacks, which could trouble Real Madrid’s defense.
Real Madrid are the favorites at home, but Villarreal are in strong form.With a three-game winning streak. This game is expected to be close and competitive
Safe Calls
- Both Teams to Score: YES Real’s defense is still not at full strength, while Villarreal has scored six times in their last seven matches across all competitions
- Over 2.5 Goals: Likely
- Mbappé to score or assist: YES. The French striker is in hot form. He scored a hat-trick in the Champions League this week and has already scored 13 goals this season.
- Real Madrid to Win or Draw. The hosts are favored to win. They have won all four home games so far this season, and Villarreal have beaten Real Madrid only twice in the past seven years.
