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Real Madrid vs Villarreal Live Football Score 08/04/2023
Arguably the pick of the La Liga matches in the next game week will take place at Bernabeu on Saturday evening, with the champions Real Madrid welcoming Villarreal to Bernabeu. Los Blancos are currently second in the table, 11 points behind leaders Barcelona on the same number of games (27), while Villarreal sit sixth, four points behind fourth-placed Real Sociedad in the race for a top-four finish. Unless something extraordinary happens over the next few weeks, Real Madrid are not going to retain the La Liga title this season, with Barcelona sitting 11 points clear at the top of the division, meaning that the Catalan outfit would have to have a serious collapse to open the race back up.
Carlo Ancelotti’s side are chasing silverware in two competitions this season, though, including the Champions League, where they are preparing to take on Chelsea in the quarter-finals. Los Blancos will enter this match off the back of a stunning result, meanwhile, having recorded a 4-0 victory over Barcelona in the second leg of their Copa del Rey semi-final at Camp Nou on Wednesday. Real Madrid were 1-0 behind heading into the second leg, but a famous win saw them advance to the final, where they will take on Osasuna for the silverware.
Los Blancos have the second-best home record in the league this season, picking up 31 points from 13 matches at Bernabeu, while Villarreal have the sixth-best record on their travels. However, Ancelotti’s side are without a victory in their last four La Liga matches with the Yellow Submarine and suffered a 2-1 loss in the reverse game earlier this season. Villarreal, meanwhile, will enter this match off the back of a morale-boosting 2-0 home success over Real Sociedad last weekend.
Dani Parejo’s 77th-minute penalty sent Quique Setien’s side into the lead, before Nicolas Jackson registered a second four minutes later, with the home side securing a vital three points in their top-four battle. The Yellow Submarine are sixth in the table, one point behind fifth-placed Real Betis and four behind fourth-placed Real Sociedad, with the three teams battling for a Champions League spot. Villarreal have not finished fourth in Spain’s top flight since 2016, and they have been seventh in the last two campaigns, so it would be an impressive jump to fourth this term.
Setien’s side suffered a surprise elimination to Anderlecht in the Europa Conference League last month, but the exit will allow them to fully concentrate on the league, and they have a relatively kind fixture list in the closing stages of the season, which could prove decisive.. Real Madrid’s squad is in strong shape at a vital stage of the season, with Ferland Mendy, who is on the sidelines with a calf issue, their only first-team absentee. Los Blancos boss Ancelotti will have one eye on next week’s Champions League quarter-final first leg with Chelsea, though, so there are expected to be some alterations for this match.
Lucas Vazquez, Nacho, Antonio Rudiger, Aurelien Tchouameni, Dani Ceballos and Marco Asensio could all come in for starts, while it would also not be a shock to see Benzema start on the bench for the Spanish champions here. As for Villarreal, Jackson will be unavailable this weekend due to the red card that he picked up in the clash with Real Sociedad, while Etienne Capoue, Gerard Moreno and Francis Coquelin are still injured. Raul Albiol’s fitness will also need to be assessed before a final decision on his involvement. Head coach Setien is expected to select close to the same XI that took to the field for the first whistle against Real Sociedad, with Jose Luis Morales starting through the middle in the absence of Gerard Moreno.
Villarreal are currently in sixth place in the La Liga standings and have been plagued by inconsistency over the course of their campaign. The away side defeated Real Sociedad by a 2-0 margin last week and will need to work hard to achieve a similar result in this match. Real Madrid, on the other hand, are in second place in the league table at the moment and have been fairly impressive this season. Los Blancos pulled off a stunning 4-0 victory against Barcelona in the Copa del Rey this week and will be confident ahead of this fixture.
Real Madrid have been in impressive form in recent weeks and were unstoppable in the second half against Barcelona. Karim Benzema and Vinicius Junior have been in excellent form over the past month and will look to make their mark this weekend. Villarreal have an impressive squad at their disposal and are capable of pulling off an upset on their day. Real Madrid are in better form at the moment, however, and should be able to win this game.
