He Real Madrid needs to beat this Sunday in Ipurua in order not to suffer a slowdown in his climb to the leadership held by the Athletic after knocking down Elche (3-1) yesterday. In addition, whites can score 8 points by Barça, which tied (2-2) with Valencia. He Eibar will evaluate the resurrection of a white team that has won its last three league games: 0-1 against Sevilla, 2-0 in the Madrid derby and 3-1 against Athletic, as well as 2-0 against Gladbach in the Champions, that classified the meringues for the round of 16 as group winners.
Those of Zinedine Zidane They will face a solid Eibar in defense (10 goals conceded in 13 games), but that is the only one of First division who have yet to win at home this season after seven home games (four draws and three losses, with a single goal for and five against).
The whites crashed two years ago
He Real Madrid He is looking for the three points in a stadium that is especially good for him with five wins and one loss in the six league games he has played in Ipurua. Last season, the meringues were imposed by a round 0-4 (They were already 0-3 in the 29th minute), although a little more than two years ago, in the first defeat of Santiago Solari as a white technician, they crashed against those of José Luis Mendilibar (3-0), in a meeting in which Thibaut Courtois He avoided a major disaster with his interventions and in which Eibar made history by winning their first official match against the meringues.
For this meeting, Zidane will be able to count on the Brazilian again Carlos Henrique Casemiro, who will return to an eleven after serving a penalty game against Athletic last day. Except for a capital surprise, it will be in the starting eleven merengue.
Apart from the more than probable return of Casemiro, Zizou will have to clear several doubts. The general rule is if you bet on a continuation eleven or if you decide to apply a rotation policy to give rest to players with many minutes on their legs. If you opt for the second, Modric, Kroos or Mendy they could rest. Fede Valverde, Marcelo, Asensio or Rodrygo they wait their turn.
Hazard, Isco and Vinicius, off the list
A Madrid that will have the absences of Isco Alarcón, Vinicius and Eden Hazard. Zidane had to do without the Malaga midfielder due to a blow to an ankle during the last Real Madrid training session, in which the young Brazilian attacker did not participate either, another of the absences from the squad due to gastroenteritis. Belgian, who, although he has already left the infirmary, will have to wait because Zidane wants to go little by little with one of his important players.
Eibar, meanwhile, is two points from relegation and it cannot be neglected. They urgently need to find victory again after having won only one of their last six league games (one win, four draws and one loss). This week, the gunsmiths solved their Cup duel in the field of Racing Rioja (0-2), a modest Third Division team, thanks to a double by Pedro León.
Mendilibar faces the duel with many casualties
José Luis Mendilibar will have to rebuild his lineup before the plague of injuries and sanctions that he suffers and that affect up to six players, mainly in his defense. Are discarded Cote, who is still recovering from his serious injury, as well as the Argentine defender Esteban Burgos, sanctioned after seeing his fifth card on Sunday against Real Sociedad. Another discard is the forward Quique Gonzalez, who has suffered an injury to his right knee for a month.
Nor have the Portuguese central defender entered the call Paulo Oliveira, with discomfort in the hamstring muscles, and Rober Correa, with a muscle injury in the rectum that has made competition impossible, as the club's medical team already warned last Tuesday. Joins them Sergi Enrich, with a contracture.