After getting off to a perfect start in the 2023/24 La Liga, Real Madrid will now hit the road to square up against Almeria.
Almeria are all set to host Real Madrid in Matchday 2 of the new La Liga season. The hosts will look to bounce back after a disappointing loss last time out, while the visitors will look to carry on from where they left in the last outing.
The home team are heading into this encounter on the back of a 2-0 defeat at the hands of Rayo Vallecano. They had more of the ball and took more shots at goal. Almeria were the dominant team in that fixture, but they ended up gifting two penalties to the opposition and ended up losing the game.
Despite being the better team on the pitch, they ended up losing the game because they were not at their best in the final third. Against, Real Madrid they might not have a similar number of chances and will have to make sure they are more clinical in the final third to stand a chance.
Meanwhile, Real Madrid got off to a perfect start with an away win on Matchday 1 of the new season. Los Blancos squared up against Athletic Club and ended up winning 2-0 on the day. They had more of the ball, took more shots and ended up getting the desired result.
While everything went according to plan during the first fixture for Carlo Ancelotti, Real Madrid suffered another injury blow as Eder Militao was forced off the field. The Brazilian international is all set to be out for quite a few months.
Despite the injury to Militao, Los Blancos have a strong enough squad to get the job done in this away fixture against Almeria. Meanwhile, The Hard Tackle takes a closer look at both teams and tries to predict the tactics they could deploy.
Team News & Tactics
Almeria
Vicente Moreno will once again be without the services of Leo Baptistao and Martin Svidersky, who are out injured. Apart from the duo, he is expected to have a fully-fit squad to choose from.
L U I S 😝 S U Á R E Z pic.twitter.com/qd6YXXM8gL
— UD Almería (@UDAlmeria_Eng) August 18, 2023
Moreno is expected to field a similar XI to the one he did in their last outing. He is unlikely to make too many changes despite the disappointing result. Almeria will start with the 4-2-3-1 formation where Diego Mariño will be in goal.
Marc Pubill and Sergio Akieme will start out wide on the flanks as the full-backs. In the heart of the defence, Edgar Gonzalez will team up with Srdjan Babic. The duo will have the tough task of stopping a star-studded Real Madrid attack.
They will have the support of Lucas Robertone and Iddrisu Baba who will feature at the double pivot in the centre of the park. The duo will have a lot of defending to do when they host Los Blancos. But, they will also look to feed their wingers and initiate quick counter-attacks.
Sergio Arribas will start on the right flank, while Adri Embarba will take care of things on the left. Largie Ramazani will feature as an attacking midfielder, while Luis Suárez will be leading the attack.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Marino; Pubill, E Gonzalez, Babic, Akieme; Robertone, Baba; Arribas, Ramazani, Embarba; Suarez
Real Madrid
We are into the second matchday of the season, and Carlo Ancelotti already has quite a few injuries to deal with. Eder Militao is the latest name on the list after having picked up an ACL injury last time out.
📋✅ Our squad for the match 🆚 @UDAlmeria_Eng! #AlmeríaRealMadrid pic.twitter.com/565hsvkLUR
— Real Madrid C.F. 🇬🇧🇺🇸 (@realmadriden) August 18, 2023
Militao and Thibaut Courtois are both set to be out of the thick of things for months. Meanwhile, Turkish sensation Arda Guler will need quite a few weeks to be back in the mix after an operation to resolve an issue in his knee. Ferland Mendy and Dani Ceballos are also unavailable for this fixture.
Real Madrid’s latest recruit Kepa Arrizabalaga is expected to make his debut in goal as the Italian manager is expected to stick with the 4-4-2 formation, where Jude Bellingham will be seen in an attacking role. Fran Garcia and Dani Carvajal will continue as the full-backs. In the heart of the defence, Antonio Rüdiger will replace Militao and will pair up with David Alaba.
Luka Modric and Toni Kroos might once again not feature from the start. Aurelien Tchouameni will be the defensive midfielder. He will have the support of Federico Valverde and Eduardo Camavinga on either side while Bellingham will continue as the attacking midfielder. In attack, the Brazilian duo of Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo Goes will be seen in action.
Probable Lineup (4-4-2): Kepa; Carvajal, Rudiger, Alaba, F Garcia; Valverde, Tchouameni, Camavinga; Bellingham; Vinicius, Rodrygo
Key Stats
- Real Madrid have won 11 out of the last 14 matches against Almeria.
- The home team have not won a game against Real Madrid since 2008.
- Los Blancos have scored 30 goals in their last seven matches against Almeria and they have won each of their fixtures.
- Real Madrid have not lost in their last 13 La Liga matches away matches against Andalusian teams.
- Almeria have lost their opening game of the season and they could end up losing their first two matches in La Liga for the first time in history.
Player to Watch
Vinicius Junior
The Brazilian sensation might not have found the back of the net in the opening fixture of the new La Liga season. But, he is amongst the best forwards in the Spanish top flight and could be the difference between the two teams.
Vinicius racked up over 40 goal contributions last season. He was on fire and is expected to be the leader of Real Madrid’s attack with Karim Benzema no longer at the club. The 23-year-old forward will look to get his name on the scoresheet when he takes the field against Almeria.
Prediction
Almeria 0-3 Real Madrid
Almeria have kick-started the 2023/24 season with a 2-0 defeat, and they will look to bounce back when they square up against title contenders Real Madrid. While they do have a competitive squad, they might not have enough in them to get past Los Blancos.
Meanwhile, Real Madrid will look to continue their dominance in the league. They have started things off in the best possible way with a clinical win and will look to continue the good work in this away fixture against Almeria. The Hard Tackle predicts an easy 3-0 win for the away team.
