Almeria vs Real Madrid

Last season’s La Liga runners-up Real Madrid head to the Power Horse Stadium to encounter hot relegation candidates Almeria.

Almeria got lucky to keep hold of their La Liga status last term, finishing a mere point clear of 18th-placed Valladolid. Yet, they could be facing another season-long fight against the drop after giving away two cheap first-half penalties in a 2-0 home loss to Rayo Vallecano on the opening weekend. It wasn’t the best way for new manager Vicente Moreno to kick things off at his new job. But Almeria’s impressive unbeaten ratio of 68% in last season’s home league matches can inspire confidence (W10, D3, L6). Moreover, ‘Los Rojiblancos’ didn’t lose consecutive La Liga outings at the Power Horse Stadium in 2022/23, though Real Madrid were among the sides to pick up three points here. A 2-1 loss in last season’s curtain-raising fixture here marked Almeria’s fourth defeat in seven top-flight H2Hs at home (W1, D2).

On the other hand, Real Madrid’s life without Karim Benzema was off to a perfect start as first-half goals from Rodrygo and marquee summer signing Jude Bellingham fired them to a 2-0 win at Athletic Bilbao on matchday one. After three away league defeats on the trot, ‘Los Merengues’ have won the last two without conceding. Despite injuries to several first-team stars, including Thibaut Courtois and Eder Militao, Carlo Ancelotti’s men come into proceedings confident of maintaining their travel resurgence after winning their last seven La Liga meetings with Almeria. Moreover, their three most recent league visits to the Power Horse Stadium have yielded victories via an aggregate score of 11-2, reinforcing Madrid’s bid to continue a 100% top-flight start.