Real before the game
Having lost the league title to Barcelona last year, Real would certainly like to reclaim the crown in Spain. The club have every chance to do this: they were in first place in the La Liga standings before the start of the 12th round, having scored the same number of points as Girona, and having a 3-point lead over their neighbors – Atlético Madrid, which has a game in hand. To place bets on Real read the complete 1xBet review which provides comprehensive insight of the bookmaker pros.
In the current campaign, the “royal club” suffered only one defeat, having won 3 victories in a row in October: over Las Palmas (2:0), Girona (0:3) and Osasuna (4:0), and then sharing points with Sevilla (1:1). Finally, last week, the team prevailed over Barca in the Clasico (1:2). Ilkay Gundogan’s precise strike in the sixth minute allowed the Catalans to take the lead, but then Bellingham secured a positive result, turning the match on its head.
Since his transfer to Real Madrid in the summer, Englishman Jude Bellingham has become the undisputed leader of the team: he has 10 goals and 2 assists in 11 rounds of La Liga. Behind him with 5 goals is the experienced Joselu, who is sure to be at the forefront of attack this evening. In addition, Toni Kroos and Rodrigo will also appear on the field from the first minutes.
Valencia should give fight
“Bats”, unlike last season, when at the finish they had to save themselves from relegation to the Segunda, now occupy a completely safe and even honorable eighth place. True, things are not going so well on the road – they only won one win, against Sevilla, and at the same time they could not beat Almeria, Mallorca, and lost to Alaves. Moreover, if the team’s victories over Sevilla (2:1) and Las Palmas (1:0) are not so surprising, then 3:0 with Atlético is already a level. However, in almost all other matches the “bats” often lost. So Ruben Barach’s players are playing rather unpredictably.
In general, it also has its problems. In the upcoming game, the Orange cannot count on the help of Marie and Diakhaby. Also, Valencia has an easier schedule. After all, Real competes in UCL.
Prediction
The guests of the upcoming match expect to qualify for European competition this season. So far, the Valencians are not far from this, but have already lost in 4 matches, but three times to opponents who finished in the European Cup zone at the end of last season. The club performs far better at home than away.
Real is obviously considered as a favorite, but, do not forget that the Blancos have certain problems in defense, so Valencia is capable of hitting the opponent’s goal at least once.