Real Madrid vs. Levante: Team News, Predicted Lineups, Live Stream & TV Info
The crisis surrounding Real Madrid will be forgotten about by 11pm central European time on Sunday night. At least that's the plan.
Carlo Ancelotti will be fed up of the noise which has surrounded the club this week, from president Florentino Perez's press conference to the criticism of Gareth Bale.
The way to set everything straight will be to demolish Levante at the Santiago Bernabeu and turn the whistles which screamed around the stadium on Tuesday night into cheers.
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With the Clasico next Sunday and no matches in between, Ancelotti has no squad management issues. He will pick his strongest team.
That, of course, includes Luka Modric and Sergio Ramos, both of whom have been injured.
Real Madrid are undefeated at home in 10 La Liga matches and that, combined with Levante being poor on the road, means the omens are good for Ancelotti's team.
Levante recently visited Barcelona and were spanked 5-0, and it would be a completely feasible outcome again if one had to guess what will occur on Sunday night.
In defence of Levante, they beat Eibar last week, while Real Madrid were being shown up by Bilbao's Athletic Club.
They also have Kalu Uche and David Barral, who can cause trouble in attacking areas.
Iker Casillas made three glaring errors in Madrid's goal against Schalke and could be replaced by Keylor Navas, although dropping the Spaniard may have repercussions for Ancelotti.
But the truth is, it's hard to see anything other than Madrid's recent sins being absolved, giving Madrid fans hope ahead of the Clasico on March 22.
Predicted Lineups
Real Madrid: Casillas, Carvajal, Ramos, Pepe, Marcelo, Modric, Kroos, Isco, Bale, Benzema, Ronaldo.
Levante: Marino, Lopez, Navarro, Ramis, Tono, Xumetra, Camarasa, Diop, Morales, Barral, Uche.
Date: Sunday, March 15
Time: 8 p.m. GMT/4 p.m. ET
Venue: Santiago Bernabeu
TV Info: beIN Sports USA (US only), Sky Sports 5 (UK only)
Live Stream: beIN Sports Connect (US only), Sky Go (UK only)
Real Madrid Form (all La Liga matches unless specified)
Feb 18 Schalke 04 0-2 Real Madrid (W, CL)
Feb 22 Elche 0-2 Real Madrid (W)
Mar 01 Real Madrid 1-1 Villarreal (D)
Mar 07 Athletic Club 1-0 Real Madrid (L)
Mar 10 Real Madrid 3-4 Schalke 04 (L, CL)
Levante Form
Feb 07 Levante 4-1 Malaga (W)
Feb 15 Barcelona 5-0 Levante (L)
Feb 23 Levante 2-1 Granada (W)
Feb 28 Rayo Vallecano 4-2 Levante (L)
Mar 06 Levante 2-1 Eibar (W)
Key Quote
Carlo Ancelotti was questioned by journalists in his press conference before the game. Asked about Casillas' form, the Italian produced an odd response. Per AS, he said:
"The team I put out wouldn't be to point the finger at anyone. If Keylor plays then I will have taken the decision purely to give him some playing time because he’s training well. Not to point the finger at anybody. If Keylor plays tomorrow then no doubt Casillas will play against Barca. If Casillas plays tomorrow, then on Sunday against Barcelona then no doubt Casillas will play.
"
Key Battle
Gareth Bale has not scored or assisted a goal in eight matches. That's an astonishing length of time for a player of his ilk. He'll be looking to get into the right gear ahead of the Clasico, and down Real Madrid's right flank, Tono is the man who will have to stop him for Levante.
Betting Odds
The following pre-match odds are available via our betting partner Odds Shark:
Home Win: 100/1667
Away Win: 25/1
Draw: 11/1
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