January 19, 2025. 5:15 p.m. Madrid. “Santiago Bernabeu”.
La Liga 2024-25. Day 20
“Real Madrid” – “The Palms”
Suspended: Luka Modric, Vinícius Júnior – Dariu Esugu
Injured: Dani Carvajal, Éder Militão, Eduardo Camavinga – Marvin
Uncertain : David Alaba – Alex Suarez, Viti Rosada, Jose Campaña
Real Madrid
For the ‘Blancos’, the next match will mark their sixth meeting in less than three weeks since the start of 2025, with four more matches to be played before February 1. The pace is simply frenetic. Given Carlo Ancelotti’s reluctance to rotate his squad, some players are completely burning out, so it’s no surprise that injuries are piling up. At the start of December, Madrid suffered a defeat in the second El Clasico of the season, losing 1–2 to Athletic Bilbao in a rescheduled Matchday 19 match. Following this disappointing away performance, the “Real” recovered by winning four of their last five matches of the year, with one draw, scoring no less than three goals in each of these matches.
The new year started off positively for the team. On January 3, Carlo Ancelotti’s side managed a hard-fought 2–1 victory at Valencia, despite the match ending with ten men. Three days later, the “Blancos”, fielding a reserve team, easily disposed of Deportivo Minero in the fourth division with a remarkable score of 5-0. On January 9, Madrid triumphed 3–0 over Mallorca in the semi-final of the Spanish Super Cup, but just three days later they suffered a catastrophic defeat in the final of the tournament, losing another El Clasico this season in style. scandalous, with a 2-5 scoreline against Barcelona, which was eerily similar to the 0-4 defeat they suffered at the Santiago Bernabeu in October. Defensive weaknesses, physical decline and a complete lack of understanding on how to deal with this opponent have been glaring.
-Last week, “Real” won 5-2, but three of those goals against Celta in the Copa del Rey round of 16 came in overtime. The Madrid side were ahead by two goals, but questions were raised regarding the legitimacy of the opening goal, where it looked like a penalty should have been awarded to Andriy Lunin instead. However, the Swedish player Svedberg deliberately came into contact with the hand of the Ukrainian goalkeeper – the goals were scored by Kylian Mbappé and Vinícius Júnior. A few goals were disallowed, and overall the “Blancos” felt quite comfortable. Suddenly, the Galicians took advantage of a defensive error and closed the gap, and just before the final whistle, a controversial penalty was awarded, supposedly to atone for the previous mistake from the first half. The highlight of the show came in the second extra time, where we saw three superb goals – two from the young nugget Endrick and another masterpiece from Federico Valverde.
The Palms
For the islanders, the next match in Madrid will be only their third of the new year. Additionally, there are teams in La Liga who will only play their second match this weekend. This situation stems from the fact that some teams quickly exited the Copa del Rey. Therefore, a busy schedule represents both a burden and an opportunity. The Canarians have not strayed from this path, gradually settling into the second part of the season with a clear objective: to maintain their position in the elite. Since the arrival of Diego Martínez, the team has made significant progress towards this goal. Under his leadership, “Las Palmas” have already recorded six La Liga wins from ten matches, doubling the total achieved under the previous coaches in 2024.
This rise in power allowed the “Jaunes-Bleus” to quickly move up the rankings. In the end, they finished the first half of the season in 14th place, six points outside the relegation zone. Before the winter break, Diego Martínez’s team went on a five-game unbeaten run, winning four of those games. Notably, this series began with a historic away victory against then-championship leaders Barcelona. However, in the new year, “Las Palmas” faced only defeats. First, they were beaten at home in a cup match by Elche (4-0), and last weekend, the “Yellows-Blues” were surprised at home by Getafe. For most of this match, they had the initiative, created chances, and even won a penalty, which Fabio Silva missed. Subsequently, the “Azulones” took the advantage out of nowhere. Closer to the final whistle, the visitors scored a second goal. Adnan Januzaj reduced the gap for “Las Palmas”, but they could not equalize.
Real Madrid – Las Palmas : Probable Teams
For “Real”, Luka Modric and Vinícius Júnior are suspended. The injured list usually includes Dani Carvajal and Éder Militão, and after the cup match, Eduardo Camavinga joined them. Additionally, it remains uncertain whether David Alaba is fit to return. As for “Las Palmas”, they have suspended midfielder Dariu Esugu, and injured full-back Marvin, a product of the “Blancos” academy, while the participation of Alex Suarez, Viti Rosada and Jose Campaña remains uncertain .
Real Madrid – Las Palmas : Author’s prediction
Earlier this season, ‘Real’ failed to win against ‘Las Palmas’ in Gran Canaria, conceding a 1-1 draw. Memories also linger of the match between these two teams at the Santiago Bernabeu in spring 2017, where the islanders under Quique Setien drew 3-3 with the ‘Blancos’. However, in most meetings, Madrid have generally triumphed over the “Yellows-Blues”. I predict that “Real” will win this time again, maybe not without difficulties, but they will emerge victorious. I’m also waiting for another goal from Kylian Mbappé, who is slowly finding his rhythm and scoring regularly, or a goal from Jude Bellingham, who is rated at a more serious coefficient.
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