Real Madrid dropped points in a 1-1 draw against lowly Almeria last weekend, leaving Barcelona four points adrift at the top of La Liga. This week, both teams are heavily favored again, but Real Madrid faces a minor test to avoid falling farther behind their rivals. They host flat broke Mallorca, who Michael Laudrup has admirably guided to a mid-table finish. Mallorca, of course, are the side that managed to hold Real Madrid to a 0-0 draw in the opening match of the season.
Spanish La Liga, Round 20: Real Madrid Chases Barcelona, Espanyol Tested Again
That game comes on Sunday, though. On Saturday, under-achieving Sevilla takes on Levante before Barcelona takes on a Racing Santander team seemingly devoid of quality. They’ve been thoroughly destroyed in both of their fixtures against Spain’s “big two” in the first half of the season, with their loss to Real Madrid being particularly embarrassing. In the night cap, Valencia takes on Manuel Pellegrini’s Malaga and their struggling defense.
There are four 11 am ET kickoffs on Sunday in La Liga, but our focus will be on the match between Espanyol and Getafe, two teams fighting for Europe. Espanyol pulled off a great win last week against Sevilla and they will be tested against a Getafe team who is similar in talent, formation, and style.
Real Madrid take on Mallorca in the 1 pm game before the night cap, where Villarreal, still minus Nilmar, will host the most unpredictable team in La Liga, Real Sociedad.
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