Real Madrid and coach Jose Mourinho have not entered a match against cross town rivals as the heavy underdogs. However, a 1-0 loss last week to Real Betis and the subsequent jeering in the 3-0 Copa del Rey win over Alcoyano have made them the laughing stock of the Spanish league.
Now a full 11 points behind rivals Barcelona, Madrid's journey to reclaim their title from last season is a long and hard one with the odds stacked heavily against them. But to get to Barcelona they have to go through Atletico Madrid who is currently in second place and a healthy eight points ahead of them. A win on Saturday could help Madrid cut that deficit to five.
But Mourinho has a great deal of things to fix if this team can even hope of coming away with three points in their biggest test since the October match with Barcelona at the Camp Nou. Cristiano Ronaldo is going to need to break his three game goalless streak. He has just one goal in six matches for Real Madrid and needs to get back to form if this team is wants to return to contention. Mesut Ozil needs to establish himself. The German midfielder is having one of his worst seasons of his career but has looked increasingly better. Last week, however, he was unable to break down Real Betis' defense and Madrid was shut down.
On the other end of things, Mourinho's defense needs to shut down Colombian superstar Radamel Falcao who currently has 11 goals for Atletico and can score from anywhere. His confidence and tremendous finishing are a major reason why Atletico is having such a phenomenal season thus far.
Prediction: Real Madrid is the team with better quality and playing at home with something to prove should motivate them to a solid performance. However, Atletico will not play poorly at the Bernabeu; especially knowing that a win opens up an 11 point gap between then and Real Madrid. Nonetheless, expect a big game from Ronaldo and a 2-1 win for Real Madrid.
Start Time: 4PM EST
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