Who: Celta Vigo vs Real Madrid
Content: Spanish soccer La Liga
Location: Balaidos Stadium, Vigo, Spain
Date and time: Friday 5th March 9pm (20:00 GMT)
How to follow: Al Jazeera’s live coverage begins at 17:00 GMT.
Real Madrid will be looking to get back to winning ways in La Liga before facing their new arch-rivals in Europe after back-to-back defeats.
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Madrid have suffered back-to-back losses in La Liga after blowing out 2-1 against Osasuna and 1-0 against lower-ranked Getafe at their home Bernabéu stadium.
On Friday, they will look to make a comeback against Celta Vigo, trailing leaders Barcelona by four points.
Al Jazeera Sports takes a closer look at what could be a season-defining few days for Los Blancos.
Arbeloa says Real Madrid are fully focused on Celta Vigo
After the game against Celta, Alvaro Arbeloa’s side can fully concentrate on next week’s home game against Manchester City for the start of the Champions League Round of 16.
Madrid and City have met in the knockout stages for the past four years, with Madrid coming through at the expense of Josep Guardiola’s side on the last two occasions. However, City have already defeated Madrid in the regular season this season.
But Arbeloa said his team would not look back from the game in Vigo and aim to turn things around in Spain’s top flight.
“In a team like Real Madrid, defeat is always difficult because of the expectations and demands, but right now all we are thinking about is the game against (Celta),” Arbeloa said on Thursday. “That’s the only concern for us.”
How is La Liga going between Real Madrid and Celta Vigo?
Sixth place Celta has won four consecutive games in the league and the Europa League.
Meanwhile, Real will be hoping to close the gap on leaders Barcelona to one point when they visit Athletic Bilbao on Saturday.
“We’re not 18 points behind, we’re four points behind,” said Arbeloa, who replaced Xabi Alonso as manager in January. “This is Real Madrid. We’ll fight as long as we can mathematically fight, and if the time comes when we can’t fight anymore, we’ll keep fighting.”
“In the dressing room, we recognize that there is still a lot of season left.
“We have lost two league games in a row. Of course, at a club like Real Madrid, defeat is always difficult to handle because of the expectations and the pressure, but for now all we are thinking about is tomorrow’s game.”
What happened the last time Celta Vigo played Real Madrid?
Celta shocked Real earlier this season with a 2-0 win at the Estadio Bernabéu in La Liga.
Williot Swedberg hit a double in the second half of the Dec. 7 game in which three Real players were ejected.
Fran Garcia was given a red immediately after Svedberg’s 54th-minute opener, while Endrik and Alvaro Carreras received their marching orders in stoppage time.
What happened in the corresponding match between Celta Vigo and Real Madrid last season?
Real Madrid had a 2-1 record against Celta in the same matches last season.
Los Blancos took the lead in the first half with a goal from Kylian Mbappé, Svedberg equalized early in the second half, but Vinicius scored the winning goal in the 66th minute.
direct confrontation
This will be the 139th time the two sides have faced each other, with Real Madrid winning 82 of them. Celta have won 35 times.
Statistics Attack – Celta vs Real
Celta have not won a home game against Los Blancos since 2014, although they won against Real earlier this season.
The Madrid-based club have won nine of their 11 trips to Vigo since then.
Celta Vigo Team News
Striker Borja Iglesias, who has scored 14 goals this season, returns from suspension.
Marcos Alonso, Karl Starfelt and Pablo Duran are all injured and will miss the visit to Real.
Celta Vigo’s predicted lineup
Radu; Rodriguez, Aidoo, Dominguez. Mingueza, Roman, Moriba, Carreira. Jutogra, Iglesias, Alvarez
Real Madrid team news
Kylian Mbappé, Madrid’s striker and top scorer in the league, is out with a sprained left knee. Jude Bellingham is out with a left thigh injury, and Rodrigo will miss the rest of the season with a torn ACL.
“I talk to him every day,” Arbeloa said of Mbappe. “Every day he’s getting better. It’s a process we’re working on every day.”
Dani Ceballos, David Alaba and Eder Militao are also injured.
Franco Mastantuono is suspended after receiving a red card against Getafe, while Álvaro Carreras and Dean Huysén have also reached milestone yellow cards and are also unavailable.
“When you’re winning and everyone’s playing well, it’s easy to wear this shirt,” Arbeloa added, stressing that he “will not make excuses” due to injury.
“We must now show our true potential. It is moments like this that will determine whether we are worthy of wearing this shirt and this badge.”
Real Madrid predicted lineup
Courtois. Alexander-Arnold, Asensio, Rudiger, F. Garcia. Valverde, Choameni, Camavinga. Gular; G. Garcia, Vinicius
Celta Vigo and Real Madrid form guide
Celta Vigo form (all competitions – last of most recent matches):
Real Madrid form (all competitions – most recent matches):
