Celta Vigo vs Real Madrid

Estadio de Balaidos sets the stage for a handsomely-looking La Liga meeting between Celta Vigo and Real Madrid.

Celta Vigo defied a two-man disadvantage in a heroic 1-0 win at Las Palmas right before the international break to halt a three-game winless league run (D1, L2), setting themselves up nicely for this Herculean task. Losing their last eight league fixtures against Real Madrid unequivocally shows the scale of the challenge awaiting the Balaidos outfit this weekend, suggesting a third straight winless home outing could be on the cards (D1, L1). That said, Claudio Giraldez’s side had won their opening three home league matches this season before the barren run ensued in late September, pulling off two fightbacks to topple Valencia and Alaves. Adding to Celta’s confidence, a narrow 1-0 defeat to Atletico Madrid nearly a month ago remains their only home loss across their last 11 La Liga contests (W7, D3).

In the meantime, Real Madrid squeaked past Villarreal 2-0 on the brink of the two-week hiatus from club football to snap a two-game winless streak in all competitions (D1, L1) and stay within striking distance of table-topping Barcelona. Despite enjoying a nine-match unbeaten start to their La Liga title defense (W6, D3), Carlo Ancelotti’s charges trail their arch-rivals by three points ahead of the kick-off, highlighting the significance of improving their indifferent away form this term. Indeed, ‘Los Merengues’ have drawn three of their four La Liga matches on the road thus far (W1), with each stalemate producing an identical 1-1 scoreline. But it’s worth noting that the reigning champions haven’t lost any of their last 19 top-flight encounters on hostile turf (W11, D8).