Real Madrid vs. Villarreal: Team News, Predicted Line-Ups, Live Stream & TV Info
Real Madrid will be confident of retaking a four-point advantage at the top of La Liga by claiming all three points when they host sixth-placed Villarreal at the Bernabeu on Sunday.
Carlo Ancelotti’s side have recorded three consecutive 2-0 victories in all competitions since their heavy defeat to local rivals Atletico Madrid in early February. The latest, away to Elche, came courtesy of goals from Karim Benzema and Cristiano Ronaldo.
Villarreal are likely to field a weakened team in the wake of a hectic schedule in recent weeks, but Ancelotti is still expecting a difficult match, as he made clear in his pre-match press conference.
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"They are a team with a lot of quality. They play very good football, and they are well organised and have good players. They’ve already beaten Atletico and played well against Barcelona. They are a top La Liga side. We need our strongest team out there and to play as best as we can in order to win.
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Madrid were 2-0 victors when the sides met at El Madrigal earlier this season. Villarreal did, however, give a very good account of themselves and could have got something from the match had they been more clinical in front of goal.
The Yellow Submarine come into the reverse fixture on the back of three consecutive victories in all competitions, including a 1-0 win at home to Eibar last time out in the league.
Marcelino’s side have won 17 and lost just three of their last 25 matches in all competitions, as per Soccerway.
“We are in a good moment,” goalkeeper Sergio Asenjo said prior to Sunday’s match, as per the Press Association (h/t ESPN FC). “We go to the Bernabeu with great enthusiasm.”
Date: Sunday, March 1
Time: 8:00 p.m. GMT / 3:00 p.m. ET
Venue: Estadio Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid
TV Info: Sky Sports 5 (UK only) / beIN Sports (U.S. only)
Live Stream: Sky Go (UK only) / beIN Sports Connect (U.S. only)
Form
| Real Madrid | Villarreal |
| Elche (A): Won 2-0 | Salzburg (A): Won 3-1 |
| Schalke (A): Won 2-0 | Eibar (H): Won 1-0 |
| Deportivo La Coruna (H): Won 2-0 | Salzburg (H): Won 2-1 |
| Atletico Madrid (A): Lost 4-0 | Rayo Vallecano (A): Lost 2-0 |
| Sevilla (H): Won 2-1 | Barcelona (A): Lost 3-1 |
| Real Sociedad (H): Won 4-1 | Granada (H): Won 2-0 |
Predicted Formations
Madrid will once again be without the injured James Rodriguez, Sami Khedira and Sergio Ramos, while Luka Modric also misses out despite playing an active part in training this week.
Per AS, Gareth Bale returned to full training on Friday after recovering from the ankle injury that he picked up in the win over Elche. He has been named in Ancelotti’s 19-man squad for Sunday’s match and is expected to start.
Fabio Coentrao also returns to the squad after three weeks on the sidelines with a muscle injury.
The trip to the Bernabeu represents Villarreal's seventh match in a series of eight fixtures in four weeks. And as per Javier Mata of AS, Marcelino has confirmed that he will rest most of the players who started the 3-1 win away to Salzburg in the Europa League on Thursday.
That means Eric Bailly, Chechu Dorado, Sergio Marcos, Joel Campbell, Moi Gomez and Gerard Moreno are all likely to start, with the likes of Mateo Musacchio, Victor Ruiz and Luciano Vietto dropping to the bench.
Antonio Rukavina will miss out due to a groin injury, while Madrid-loanee Denis Cheryshev is also unavailable due to the terms of his loan agreement.
Predicted Villarreal starting XI (4-2-2-2): Asenjo,; Gaspar, Bailly, Dorado, Costa; J. dos Santos, Marcos; Campbell, Gomez; Moreno, G. dos Santos.
Players to Watch
Real Madrid: Cristiano Ronaldo
Ronaldo has an excellent record against Villarreal, having scored 10 times in his eight previous appearances against the Yellow Submarine, including the second goal in Madrid's 2-0 victory at El Madrigal earlier this season.
The 30-year-old is the Primera Division's top scorer against Villarreal since their initial promotion to the top flight back in 1998 and will be hopeful of adding to his tally against a weakened defence on Sunday.
Villarreal: Moi Gomez
Gomez has only started half of Villarreal’s league matches to date this term but has impressed whenever he has been given opportunities to do so. Per WhoScored.com, he has made a direct contribution (scoring or providing the assist) to a goal every 152 minutes so far this season.
He has enjoyed a particularly fruitful relationship with Cheryshev and Vietto. However, with the former unavailable and the latter likely to start on the bench, if Villarreal are to get anything from their visit to the capital, the onus will be on the diminutive academy graduate to produce a strong performance on Sunday.
Key Battle: Karim Benzema vs. Eric Bailly
Bailly enjoyed a solid debut for Villarreal in their 1-0 win away to Eibar last weekend. “I was a bit nervous at first but it got better and much easier,” he told AS (h/t Football Espana). However, he will be faced with a much tougher test on Sunday.
Benzema scored for a second consecutive league match in Madrid’s 2-0 win away to Elche, and his intelligent movement and link-play will certainly make things difficult for the 20-year-old.
Bailly made an uncertain start up against Luis Suarez in Espanyol’s 5-1 defeat to Barcelona in December, allowing himself to be dragged out of position by the striker’s movement. However, he soon settled and performed very well thereafter, making some superb tackles and interceptions inside the penalty area.
The Ivory Coast international will have to be similarly attentive on Sunday. If not, either through a goal of his own or by his movement creating space for Bale or Ronaldo to move into, Benzema could be the difference-maker for Madrid.
Odds
Real Madrid: 20/91
Villarreal: 12/1
Draw: 11/2
*All odds courtesy of Odds Shark
