Xabi Alonso’s Real Madrid will look to make it three wins in a row in the league when they host RCD Mallorca on Saturday.

While Real Madrid will be aiming for a third consecutive win and another clean sheet, visitors RCD Mallorca will be hoping to cause an upset and register their first victory of the new season.

The home team started the season with a 1-0 win over Osasuna. While they did get the job done, it was not a convincing performance from Los Blancos. However, they did put up a strong performance against newly promoted Real Oviedo last time out.

Following the 3-0 win, the team in white will be high on confidence heading into this fixture. With Kylian Mbappe in red-hot form and Vinicius Junior slowly getting back to his best, expect a lot of goals in this home game.

Meanwhile, the visitors started the new season with a 3-0 defeat to defending champions, Barcelona. Mallorca were by far the second-best team on the night, and they were lucky to have lost by just three goals.

After getting smashed by the Catalan giants, Mallorca did put up a much better performance against Celta Vigo to earn their first points of the new season. While they will be eyeing their first win, it certainly won’t be easy to take down giants Real Madrid in their backyard. The Hard Tackle takes a close look at both teams and tries to predict the tactics they could deploy.

Team News & Tactics

Real Madrid

Jude Bellingham, Endrick, Ferland Mendy, and Eduardo Camavinga remain on the sidelines for Xabi Alonso’s team. Since the team in white do not have any fresh injury concerns, it could be a similar XI to the one that started in their last outing.

Real Madrid will line up in a 4-3-3 formation, where Thibaut Courtois will be in goal. Dani Carvajal should continue at right-back, while Alvaro Carreras will feature on the opposite flank. Antonio Rudiger should keep his place in the team alongside summer signing Dean Huijsen.

In the centre of the park, Aurelien Tchouameni will take up the defensive midfield role. He will have the support of Federico Valverde and Arda Guler. Vinicius Junior and Brahim Diaz could both return to the starting XI in place of Rodrygo and Franco Mastantuono. Meanwhile, Kylian Mbappe will continue to lead the line for Real Madrid vs RCD Mallorca.

Probable Lineup (4-3-3): Courtois; Carvajal, Rudiger, Huijsen, Carreras; Valverde, Tchouameni, Guler; Diaz, Mbappe, Vinicius Junior

RCD Mallorca

RCD Mallorca do have a boost heading into this fixture as Vedat Muriqi and Manu Morlanes are both back in the mix after serving their suspensions. The visitors do not have any fresh injury concerns, so they are expected to start with their strongest possible XI against Real Madrid.

Mallorca will line up in a 3-4-1-2 formation, where Leo Roman will take charge in goal. Marash Kumbulla will start alongside Antonio Raillo and Martin Valjent in the heart of the defence.

Manu Morlanes and Johan Mojica will be the wing-backs for the visitors, while Sergi Darder will partner with Toni Lato in the centre of the park. Pablo Torre will feature as the number ten behind the attacking duo of Takuma Asano and Vedat Muriqi.

Probable Lineup (3-4-1-2): Roman; Kumbulla, Raillo, Valjent; Morlanes, Darder, Lato, Mojica; Torre; Muriqi, Asano

Key Stats

• Real Madrid have won 27 out of the last 45 matches against RCD Mallorca, who have only won 12 of those games.
• Los Blancos have won each of their last nine home league games against Mallorca.
• Jagoba Arrasate’s team are unbeaten in four out of their last six away league games against teams from Madrid.
• RCD Mallorca last won against Real Madrid in February 2023, but their last away win came in May 2009.
• Los Blancos are one of the five Spanish clubs to have won both their opening games in the new season.

Player to Watch

Vinicius Junior

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Vinicius Junior has not been in the best of form since the Ballon d’Or snub, and he was even benched by Xabi Alonso in their last outing. But the Brazilian international had the perfect response as he came off the bench to bag an assist and a goal in their last outing.

He seems to be slowly getting back to his best. The 25-year-old is expected to return to the starting XI for this fixture, and he will be eager to make a mark here. While Mallorca’s defence will be looking to keep Mbappe quiet, Vinicius might actually be the one who ends up making things difficult for them.

Prediction

Real Madrid 4-0 RCD Mallorca

Real Madrid head into this clash full of confidence after a convincing win over Real Oviedo, and with Kylian Mbappe in scintillating form alongside a rejuvenated Vinicius Junior, they will fancy their chances of putting Mallorca to the sword.

Mallorca, on the other hand, will be hoping to frustrate the Spanish giants, but their lack of cutting edge in the final third makes it difficult to see them causing a real upset. While Vedat Muriqi’s return does give them more presence in attack, Jagoba Arrasate’s men have historically struggled away at Madrid, and this fixture looks no different. The Hard Tackle predicts an easy 4-0 win for the home team.