Who: Real Madrid vs. Villarreal
What: Spanish La Liga
Where: Estadio de la Ceramica in Villarreal, Spain
When: Saturday, January 23, at 9pm (20:00 GMT).
How to follow: We’ll have all the build-up on Al Jazeera Sport from 17:00 GMT in advance of our text commentary stream.
Real Madrid will win the title game on Saturday, but a valiant Villarreal has their own goals for a title challenge in front of them.
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Los Blancos parted ways with Xabi Alonso on January 12 and experienced a Copa del Rey exit in their very next game against lowly Albacete.
Moving above Barcelona, who won’t play until they play Real Oviedo on Sunday, would be a serious statement for the Spanish giants, whose recent slump appeared to be on its last legs.
As Villarreal continue their plight as the surprise package for the season, Al Jazeera Sport examines Saturday’s game, where they will hope to add their own twist.
How did Real Madrid change the formula?
Real Madrid resurrected this week, led by a stellar Vinicius Junior, and will now attempt to outmatch a potential title challenger as they travel to Spain’s east coast at the same time.
A crushing 6-1 victory over Monaco on Tuesday in the Champions League helped lift the spirits out of the city’s gloom and give Alvaro Arbeloa a small amount of credit. A victory in their final league game against Benfica on Wednesday will ensure automatic qualification for the last 16.
After the Copa del Rey last 16 defeat defeat at home to Albacete in his first game at the helm, the midweek match provided the first glimpse of what his team might look like.
A monumental display of discord from home fans, the team’s shadow, came after Arbeloa’s victory over Levante in La Liga last weekend.
Madrid put on their best performance of the season, with the fans backing them once more against Monaco, with Brazilian winger Vinicius putting in a sensational display in particular.
Vinicius has been struggling, and why did Real Madrid fans boo him?
Vinicius has now scored two goals in his final four games after playing 16 games straight without finding the net.
He continued to be a threat and participated in three more of his team’s strikes, aside from a delightful solo goal against Monaco.
The performance slammed the boo boys in the stands and reaffirmed Real’s commitment to its Champions League and La Liga double in 2024.
Teammate Jude Bellingham, “I believe that he thrives when he finds love,” said Bellingham. He “expands his game in unprecedented ways,” and he turns out to be much more enjoyable to watch and play.
I believe that’s the kind of pressure a player is subjected to when they whistle. But now it seems like he has a little break from those chains, and we can look forward to continuing.
What does Vinicius think of his appearance?
Vinicius himself acknowledged that he lacked the backing of the Bernabeu.
The winger argued that “we must keep going and have the support of our fans” for a return to normalcy.
The fans also want to win, and if we work together, we’ll achieve great things this season.
After the Spaniard had publicly defended him over the past week, the winger ran over to Arbeloa, his coach, to hug him.
The coach said, “I saw the fans completely dedicated to Vinicius, chanting his name, and I said it the other day. He needs to feel loved by his people, he needs to feel very emotional, “said the coach.
Vinicius’ Real Madrid contract expires on a future date.
Vinicius, who finished 2024 as the only place in the Ballon d’Or rankings, has struggled to maintain consistency ever since.
The 25-year-old’s Madrid contract expires in the summer of 2027, and he has reportedly been in a dispute with the club over whether or not to renew it.
That situation appears to be easing gradually in the days following his sensational performance against Monaco.
The pace of renewal discussions is “growing.” The Brazilian is aware that Real Madrid as an organization is firmly behind him despite a turbulent week, according to Spanish newspaper AS.
Vinicius needed the support of his own to rise from the dead, and Alvaro Arbeloa and his teammates first gave him that assurance.
A happy Vinicius will result in a happy Madrid, according to Arbeloa from the beginning of his rule.
What form has Villarreal played this season in La Liga?
A defeat would almost eliminate any chance of a first La Liga title for Villarreal, who are seven points behind Madrid and eight clear of champions Barca.
However, it has been a remarkable run so far, regardless of what happens on Saturday.
The East Coast club won five of their first seven La Liga games this season, losing just one. A run like this would result in six straight victories for them from late October until early December, a run that was ultimately ended by Barcelona.
Toral’s side recovered to win their next two matches, but they did lose to Real Betis last Saturday to go down 2-0.
With eight wins, a draw, and one defeat at home this season, the Estadio de la Ceramica has established itself as a fortress, which is an improvement over five victories, a draw, and three road losses.
What was Villarreal’s performance in the Champions League?
With six defeats and a draw in their seven games, Villarreal’s exploits in Europe have been less rewarding.
Any hopes of making it to the next round have long since vanished as they approach the final phase of the Champions League at Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday.
What transpired between Villarreal and Real Madrid last time?
At Bernabeu on October 4, Real defeated Real 3-1 to win the first La Liga game of the season.
With 20 minutes left, Vinicius Junior scored from the penalty spot twice in the second half to open the scoring.
After Santiago Mourino was red in the 77th minute, Georges Mikautadze pulled one back for the away team, but Kylian Mbappe soon added a third to make it 2-0.
Head-to-head
Real Madrid will prevail in their 55th meeting, with Real Madrid winning 31 of the matches. Only six victories have been won by Villalarreal.
News from the Villareal team
The visit to Real will not include Willy Kambwala (hamstring), Logan Costa (knee), Pau Cabanes (knee), Santi Comesana (suspended), and Santiago Mourino (suspended).
Head coach Marcelino will make the changes and re-sign a number of the top players, including Tajon Buchanan, Georges Mikautadze, Dani Parejo, Pau Navarro, and Alfonso Pedraza, after the Champions League had undergone a significant change in its starting lineup in midweek.
Villarreal predicted a starting lineup (4-4-2)
Junior, Navarro, Veiga, Foyth, Pedraza, Buchanan, Parejo, Gueye, Moleiro, Perez, Mikautadze, and Perez are just a few examples.
Real Madrid team news
Aurelien Tchouameni’s fifth season booking, which came with last weekend’s 2-0 victory over Levante, has given him a suspended suspension.
Brahim Diaz and Rodrigo Rodrigo have both returned from Morocco duty, with Rodrigo having injured him and set to start.
Antonio Rudiger (knee), Ferland Mendy (hamstring), Eder Militao (hamstring), and Trent Alexander-Arnold (thigh) are all still missing.
Real Madrid had a starting lineup in mind (4-3-3).
Carreras, Guler, Camavinga, Bellingham, Rodrygo, Mbappe, Vinicius, Courtois, Valverde, Huijsen, Asencio, Carreras, Guler, Camavinga, Rodrygo, Mbappe, Vinicius,
Last five matches between Real Madrid and Villareal
Villarreal: W-L-L-W-W (most recent result last across all competitions).
