Real Madrid will be aiming to book their spot in the final of the Copa del Rey when they welcome fellow La Liga outfit Real Sociedad to Bernabeu on Tuesday night for the second leg of their semi-final.
Los Blancos have an advantage to bring into the contest in the Spanish capital, having run out 1-0 winners in the first leg at the end of February, with Endrick netting the only goal of the clash in the 19th minute.
Match preview
Real Madrid were given a scare by Leganes in La Liga on Saturday night, but the reigning Spanish champions, as they often do, were ultimately able to get the job done, recording a 3-2 victory, with Kylian Mbappe netting a brace.
The result moved Los Blancos level on points with Barcelona at the top of the La Liga table, but the gap is now back to three points, with Hansi Flick‘s side beating Girona 4-1 on home soil on Sunday afternoon.
Real Madrid are chasing a treble this season, with Carlo Ancelotti‘s side also present in the quarter-finals of the Champions League, preparing to head to Arsenal for the first leg of their last-eight clash on April 8.
La Liga and the Champions League are the main priorities for Real Madrid, but the capital giants are also in an excellent position when it comes to reaching the final of the Copa del Rey, holding a 1-0 lead from the first leg of their semi-final with Real Sociedad.
Los Blancos are 20-time winners of the Copa del Rey, making them the third-most successful side in the competition’s history behind Barcelona (31) and Athletic Bilbao (24), but they have only won the trophy once since 2014.
Real Sociedad have won the Copa del Rey twice, with their last success coming in 2019-20, which proved to be their first triumph in the competition since 1987.
La Real are having a disappointing campaign from a La Liga point of view, currently sitting down in 10th spot in the table, only picking up 38 points from their 29 matches, and they are just two points ahead of Getafe in 12th.
Imanol Alguacil‘s side will enter this match off the back of a win, having beaten Real Valladolid 2-1 on Saturday, but that proved to be their first success in any competition since February 23.
Real Sociedad have been beaten in five of their last six domestic matches on their travels, while they have not managed to overcome Real Madrid in La Liga at Bernabeu since January 2019.
That said, the Basque side did record a 4-3 victory at Bernabeu in the Copa del Rey back in February 2020, and the fact that Real Madrid have their eyes elsewhere could hand the visitors an advantage on Tuesday night.
Team News
Real Madrid are expected to have Thibaut Courtois available after the team’s number one goalkeeper missed out against Leganes due to muscular fatigue, but Andriy Lunin is the Copa del Rey stopper, so the number two is in line for another start.
Ferland Mendy, Dani Ceballos, Eder Militao and Dani Carvajal will all miss out through injury, but the home side have not reported any fresh concerns from their clash with Leganes on Saturday.
Vinicius Junior, Rodrygo, Federico Valverde and Aurelien Tchouameni are all in line for recalls, while there will be another spot through the middle for Mbappe, who is on 33 goals for Real Madrid during his debut season at the club.
As for Real Sociedad, Brais Mendez is a doubt due to a foot issue, while Nayef Aguerd, Sheraldo Becker, Arsen Zakharyan and Jon Pacheco could also miss the second leg of the semi-final.
Ander Barrenetxea was not available against Real Valladolid on Saturday through suspension, but the Spaniard will be in the squad for this match, and he is expected to be in the first XI.
Mikel Oyarzabal is the team’s leading goalscorer this season, finding the back of the net on 12 occasions in all competitions, and the Spain international is set to operate through the middle for the Basque outfit.
Real Madrid possible starting lineup:
Lunin; Vazquez, Asensio, Rudiger, F Garcia; Valverde, Tchouameni, Bellingham; Rodrygo, Mbappe, Vinicius
Real Sociedad possible starting lineup:
Remiro; Traore, Zubeldia, Elustondo, Munoz; Sucic, Zubimendi, Marin; Kubo, Oyarzabal, Barrenetxea
We say: Real Madrid 3-1 Real Sociedad (Real Madrid win 4-1 on aggregate)
Real Sociedad are a lot better than they have shown this season, but we are finding it incredibly difficult to back them to pick up a positive result here; Real Madrid are a winning machine, and we are expecting Los Blancos to secure their spot in the final of the Copa del Rey without any drama.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
