Real Madrid pushes for leadership at the Bernabéu
Carlo Ancelotti's men face a Villarreal team in the last home match of 2023 that is looking for a great argument to stay away from relegation
MADRID, 16 Dic. (EUROPA PRESS) –
Real Madrid receives Villarreal this Sunday in a match corresponding to matchday 17 of LaLiga EA Sports 2023-2024, a duel in which the Madridistas will want to say goodbye to their year at the Santiago Bernabéu with a victory that would lift them to the top, waiting for what the leader Girona does this Monday, while those from Castellón seek to continue their agonizing continental triumph and maintain their recent good performance in a complicated Merengue fiefdom.
This Sunday (9:00 p.m.) the Madrid venue draws the curtain on the year as the home of Real Madrid, with the main mission of placing itself in first place in the table, one above Girona, which plays this Monday against Alavés. A victory would give one last joy in 2023 to the white fans, who will no longer enjoy a match in Chamartín until January 3, against Mallorca.
And the whites face the visit of Villarreal after having resolved a complicated Champions League match in Berlin with character, with continental prestige and the financial bonus as a reward. The meringues, first in their group, beat Union Berlin 2-3, coming back from an early goal by the Germans, in a duel of demands for some less common players.
At the Olympic Stadium in the Teutonic capital, a successful and effective Joselu stood out above the rest, giving the whites the victory with a stellar double. A performance that earned him the MVP of the match and extended a scoring streak of 8 goals in 21 games, so Ancelotti would take the opportunity to repeat with the Galician in the eleven.
Also completing a great game was a scorer Dani Ceballos who could appear as a starter if the Italian opts for the Andalusian and not for Modric or the in-form striker. It is the big doubt for the team to start the duel against Villarreal, after the rotations in Berlin. With the absences of Militao, Courtois, Vinícius, Camavinga, Carvajal and Güler, Ancelotti will choose players who rested on Tuesday such as Rüdiger, Mendy and Brahim.
Valverde and Kroos won't miss it at the start either, with only 45 minutes left in their legs this week. Furthermore, the best news for the Italian coach is the return of Tchouameni to the squad, although it is difficult for him to be a starter. For their part, Kepa, who played in the Champions League, and Lunin will continue to compete for the Merengue goal.
The Madrid coach will build a competitive team that will allow us to forget the draw (1-1), the third of the season, against Real Betis on the last day. A slowdown in which Jude Bellingham once again stood out and scored – already with 16 goals this season – and Rodrygo Goes who, without Vinícius, has become the leader of the white attack – 4 goals in 5 games, the second player with the most dribbles completed (38) in the five major leagues and with 36% effectiveness in finishing, since the '7' injury.
The meringues have accumulated 17 games without losing at home (W14 and D3) and precisely their last defeat occurred last April against Villarreal, one of the teams that has scratched the most at the Santiago Bernabéu in recent years. The 'Yellow Submarine' is undefeated in the League against Real Madrid since May 2021 (W2 and D2), and has not lost in its last two visits to the Madrid fiefdom, winning 2-3 last season.
However, coach Marcelino García Toral presents a history against the merengue entity that does not invite optimism. In total, in 19 matches he has only celebrated 3 victories. But his only victory at the Bernabéu was 16 years ago, with a resounding 0-3 on the Recreativo de Huelva bench.
Although this time they arrive boosted by the hard-fought victory (2-3) over Stade Rennes to advance to the Europa League as first in their group. A victory that gives momentum and morale, after a small bump, to conquer a place in which only Villarreal has won at home for two years – only Barça and the 'Submarino' have won since February 2021 -.
Villarreal, thirteenth with 16 points, travels to Madrid with the absences of Foyth, injured against Rennes, Comesaña, Denis Suárez, Pino, Gabbia and Coquelin, while those who rested in the Europa League -Cuenca, Morales and Pedraza- aim to starters in Marcelino's traditional 4-4-2. The Asturian will have to decide between Sorloth or Trigueros, as well as whether he chooses Morales on the right.
DATASHEET.
–POSIBLE ALIGNMENTS:
REAL MADRID: Kepa; Lucas Vázquez, Rüdiger, Alaba, Mendy; Kroos, Valverde, Bellingham; Brahim, Joselu and Rodrygo.
VILLARREAL: Jorgensen; Altimira, Albiol, Cuenca, Pedraza; morals, Capoue, Parejo, Baena; Sorloth and Gerard Moreno.
–REFEREE: Figueroa Vázquez (C. Andaluz).
–Santiago Bernabeu Stadium.
–TIME: 9:00 p.m./Movistar LaLiga.