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Bellingham and Mbappé, disheartened by Real Madrid's debacle in the Spanish Super Cup. Pedro Nunes (Reuters)
Real Madrid Clings to Favourable Schedule to Heal Wounds

Real Madrid Clings to Favourable Schedule to Heal Wounds

The Whites face an apparently benign stretch until the derby against Atlético, which could help calm the waters after the resounding debacle in the Super Cup.

Óscar Bellot

Madrid

Martes, 14 de enero 2025, 16:11

The sound of sabres rattling once again haunts the Santiago Bernabéu. Real Madrid's resounding defeat in the Spanish Super Cup final against Barça has once more cast doubt on the club's summer planning and has also left Carlo Ancelotti in a precarious position. Two stinging defeats in this season's Clásicos, with a 9-2 aggregate in favour of Barça, have shaken the stability of a team that seemed to have found its rhythm in the last month of competition, necessitating an immediate response to prevent the situation from spiralling out of control. In this scenario, the Chamartín side clings to an apparently favourable schedule to lick its wounds.

The reigning La Liga and Champions League champions face a stretch of the season that will bring matches seemingly favourable for recovery from the painful blows dealt by Barça. Three La Liga matches against lower-table opponents, two Champions League fixtures against teams lacking pedigree where victories are essential to keep alive their chances of direct qualification to the last 16, and a Copa del Rey tie against Celta, with another possible three weeks later, make up the path Real Madrid must navigate before reaching the potentially decisive derby against Atlético on February 9.

The Whites can seek refuge in the warmth of the Santiago Bernabéu over the next three fixtures, facing Celta, U.D. Las Palmas, and Salzburg consecutively. This trio of home games begins this Thursday with a Copa del Rey clash against the Galician side, a competition that usually plays a secondary role in Real Madrid's plans but now offers a chance for redemption after the heavy blow dealt by Barça. The Vigo team fell to Chamartín's squad in the tenth La Liga matchday but put up a fight despite a stunning goal by Mbappé and boasts of having eliminated them the last time they crossed swords in the KO tournament, with a 1-2 win in the first leg at Balaídos and a 2-2 draw in the return leg at the Bernabéu, allowing the Celts to reach the semi-finals in the 2016-17 campaign.

Three days later, U.D. Las Palmas will visit the stronghold on Paseo de la Castellana in a match corresponding to the twentieth La Liga matchday, where the Canary Islands team will try to once again make things difficult for an opponent that only managed a draw in their visit to the Estadio de Gran Canaria in the first round. Second, just one point behind Atlético, Real Madrid cannot afford another misstep in the battle to retain the title.

Between a Rock and a Hard Place

Even less room for error exists in the Champions League, where next Wednesday they will face Salzburg. The victory achieved in the last matchday against Atalanta moved Real Madrid away from the brink, but the Whites are compelled to win against an already eliminated opponent to secure passage to the next round and avoid a dangerous round of 32 tie that would add extra strain to an already gruelling schedule.

After overcoming these three home matches, Real Madrid will visit Zorrilla on Saturday, January 25, to face Valladolid, second to last in La Liga but who made them suffer in the first round clash at the Santiago Bernabéu, which ended in a misleading 3-0.

Four days later, they will close the Champions League group stage by visiting Brest's stadium, one of the surprises in this season's top continental competition. They will be wary of the risks associated with the trip to France, where they fell to Lille in the second matchday.

The series of matches leading up to the derby with Atlético will conclude for Real Madrid in Cornellá, where on February 2 they will face Espanyol, currently in the relegation zone but often a favourable opponent for a team that any further slip could leave vulnerable.

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todoalicante Real Madrid Clings to Favourable Schedule to Heal Wounds