Real Madrid will attempt to make it three league wins in a row on Sunday night with a trip to Espanyol, who are also in desperate need of the points following an alarming slump in form.
Both teams were in Copa del Rey quarter-final action on Thursday night, with Madrid earning a rousing 4-2 victory over Girona while Espanyol conceded a late goal to draw 1-1 at home to Real Betis.
But now they are ready to return to the bread and butter of the league campaign, and it’s a meaningful encounter for both teams.
MADRID ON THE UP?
After a tumultuous few months, there is now finally a sense that Madrid are gradually emerging from the slump precipitated by the departures of Zinedine Zidane and Cristiano Ronaldo, and starting to move in the right direction.
Santi Solari’s teams have won their last two league games as well as establishing a probably decisive cup advantage over Girona, and although they have a mountain to climb in La Liga there is a growing feeling that their turbulent season could well yet deliver silverware in cup competitions.
The team’s battling spirit has come to the fore, especially with the 2-1 win at Betis a couple of weeks ago and the relentless attacking ambition shown against Girona. And Solari is in the rare position of preparing for a game surrounded by an atmosphere of optimism rather than criticism.
But he also knows that it would only take one poor game for the knives to be sharpened again, and his team need to tighten up the defensive lapses which allowed Girona to create plenty of chances, while retaining the increasing attacking threat demonstrated in the last couple of weeks.
Real have a chance to make it three La Liga wins in a row.
VINICIUS TO RETAIN HIS PLACE?
More good news for Solari is that his squad’s injury crisis has significantly eased, with Toni Kroos expected to start following a three-week absence after returning to the bench for the cup win over Girona.
Kroos’ place alongside Casemiro and Luka Modric in the centre of the pitch appears to be guaranteed, but other absentees may not recover their spot in the starting 11 quite so easily.
Vinicius Junior, in particular, has taken advantage of the losses of Gareth Bale and Marco Asensio to establish himself as a genuine star in the making on the left wing, and it is hard to see how Solari could justify leaving out the young Brazilian to accommodate the returning stars, who have both now resumed full training.
An indication of the fans’ views came when a poll run by Marca newspaper saw 94 per cent of respondents say that Vinicius should keep his place, and perhaps the best chance for Bale and Asensio to both earn a recall would be if Solari decides to rest his young star. Squad rotation could also see Mariano Diaz play his first game since December, giving a break to Karim Benzema up front.
Vinicius is developing into a genuine star on the left wing.
CAN REAL TARGET HERMOSO INSPIRE ESPANYOL?
Espanyol defied all expectations by making a bright start to the season, occupying a place in the top four during the opening weeks of the campaign. But their form has fallen off a cliff in the last few weeks, with eight losses in the last nine league games plunging them into a relegation scrap and leaving manager Rubi’s future uncertain.
However, there is one reason for optimism: the slide in form coincided almost exactly with the absence of central defender Mario Hermoso, whose outstanding start to the season led to reports of interest from his former youth team club Real and an international debut.
Hermoso is now fit again, making his return to action as a second-half substitute in last week’s loss at Eibar, and his calming presence is badly needed to stabilise a defence which has looked alarmingly leaky during his absence. And if he impresses, Hermoso would do his chances of returning to his boyhood club no harm at all.
Hermoso has a chance to impress his boyhood club.
