Leganes vs Real Madrid 17/01/19

17 January 2019

Leganes need a miracle to replicate last year’s success and eliminate Real Madrid from the Copa del Rey as they take on Los Blancos at the Estadio Municipal de Butarque in the return leg trying to recover from a 3-goal deficit from the first leg.

A narrow 1-0 home win over Huesca last weekend has brought Leganes’ five-game winless run to an end (D3, D2), and it was also the first time they’ve managed to keep a clean sheet after conceding in three consecutive games. However, Los Pepineros are unbeaten in the previous eight home clashes in all competitions (W4, D4). Just 27% of Leganes’ home meetings have produced over 2.5 goals. For the Cucumber Growers, goals have been at a premium, with Leganes scoring one goal or less ten times in their last 11 competitive outings. Meanwhile, Mauricio Pellegrino’s stubborn defense has allowed over 1.5 goals per match only once in the previous seven games in all competitions, keeping a clean sheet three times in the process.

On the other hand, Los Merengues come into this meeting after a promising 2-1 road win over Real Betis in La Liga, which was their second successive victory in 2019 after two straight failures (D1, L1). It was also the seventh-time Los Blancos have managed to score over 1.5 goals per match in 14 competitive road clashes this season. Appear to be more comfortable away from home the reigning European champions have secured six wins in the last eight road meetings. What’s more, Real Madrid have won all three visits to the Estadio Municipal de Butarque since Leganes joined the top flight, scoring eight while conceding three goals in the run. A potential worry for Santiago Solari could be that his players failed to keep a clean sheet four times on their last six road trips, allowing over 1.5 goals per match three times in the process.