Two draws on the trot against arch-rivals Atletico Madrid and Pellegrini’s Real Betis have seen Real Madrid drop further behind in their pursuit of Xavi’s Barcelona. Carlo Ancelotti’s men are nine points behind the league leaders and would look to add pressure with a win against Espanyol.
The upcoming weeks could be very crucial for the Italian manager and his side with Liverpool scheduled to travel to Spain next week and two massive El Classicos coming up. A massive point of concern for Ancelotti would be the dipping form of some of his players.
And with some mammoth of games around the corner, Los Blancos would be hoping to brush aside the concerns against a mid-table Espanyol outfit.
For Espanyol, their encounters against the reigning La Liga champions haven’t been quite fruitful in the recent past.
The Spanish side has lost six out of seven previous games contested between the two sides. Los Blancos bashed the away side 3-1 in their previous meeting while the Prakeets lost 4-0 on their last trip to Santiago Bernabeu.
Although two out of three victories in their previous outings have pushed Espanyol to the 13th position on the table. But only two points separate them and Almeria who are in the drop zone.
With Real Madrid facing Liverpool next, Ancelotti’s focus could be on the English heavyweights and Espanyol would be hoping to witness a slip-up from the Spanish giants.
Real Madrid vs Espanyol confirmed line-ups
Real Madrid XI (4-3-3): Courtois; Carvajal, Militao, Nacho, Camavinga; Modric, Tchouameni, Kroos; Valverde, Rodrygo, Vinicius
Espanyol XI (4-4-2): Pacheco; Gil, Montes, S Gomez, Cabrera; Darder, Gragera, Souza, Sanchez; Braithwaite, Joselu
Real Madrid vs Espanyol LIVE updates
Real Madrid's next La Liga fixtures
Los Blancos host Liverpool next on the 16th of March as they hold a 5-2 advantage in the Champions League Round of 16. The reigning La Liga champions travel to Camp Nou to face arch-rivals FC Barcelona on the 20th of March before hosting Valladolid at home on the 2nd of April.