Real Madrid vs Valencia

Estadio Santiago Bernabeu is the venue as Real Madrid and Valencia go head-to-head in a tasty-looking La Liga encounter.

Real Madrid experienced an embarrassing start to 2022, falling to an underwhelming 1-0 defeat at relegation-battling Getafe to end a run of 11 La Liga matches without losing beforehand (W9, D2). With second-placed Sevilla now breathing down their necks, ‘Los Merengues’ will seek redemption against a Valencia side they have defeated in their last three top-flight H2Hs at home by an aggregate score of 7-0. Moreover, Carlo Ancelotti’s side came from behind to beat this opposition 2-1 in the reverse fixture in September, one of the three La Liga games they’ve won after conceding the opening goal this season (GP5 – W3, L2). Adding to Madrid’s confidence, they have not lost any of their last 26 La Liga matches on home turf (W21, D5), keeping a clean sheet in each of the last three in a row.

In the meantime, Valencia turned a 1-0 second-half lead into a lacklustre 2-1 home defeat to newly-promoted Espanyol, bringing their three-game winning streak in La Liga to a halt. On the bright side, though, the visitors have gone from five consecutive La Liga away matches without winning (D2, L3) to back-to-back league victories on the road, both of which saw them come from behind to capture all three points. Though it looks like a long shot, another triumph here would see Valencia register three away top-flight wins on the spin for the first time since November 2017. Unfortunately, those hopes are thin on the ground, considering that ‘Los Murciélagos’ have lost more La Liga games to Real Madrid (90) than against any other side in the competition’s history.