Can Osasuna pile on the misery for Real Madrid and put an end to their struggles at the Bernabéu?
By Filip Mishov
Troublesome times for the hosts
As if the damning defeat to Barcelona in El Clásico (0-4) and controversy around the Ballon d’Or ceremony were not enough for Florentino Perez & co. over the past couple of weeks, AC Milan piled on the misery at the Bernabéu by outplaying the reigning champions in the Champions League and taking home a 3-1 win on Tuesday night. With back-to-back home defeats, it is fair to say that frustrations are running high both on and off the pitch for Madrid, and the rumours around Kylian Mbappé‘s unhappiness at his new club are really not helping.
High-flying Los Rojillos are coming to Spain’s capital on the back of three consecutive victories between in league and cup, and with only three points separating the Vicente Moreno-led squad from Los Blancos (although with a game in hand) after exceeding anyone’s expectations at the start of the season. However, the Basque-based club’s record against Madrid is not one to be proud of as Osasuna‘s last win dates back to 2011 and for their last win away from home you have to go all the way back to 2004. But at the same time, Osasuna are the only side to beat high-flying league leaders Barcelona this season, which surely gives flying winger Bryan Zaragoza & co. the confidence to cause another upset.
Madrid’s injury list
The Madrid-based club’s defeat to the Rossoneri came at an additional cost as Aurélien Tchouaméni suffered an injury and the tenacious Frenchman is set to be out for at least four weeks with a sprained ankle. The defensive midfielder joins Thibaut Courtois, David Alaba and Daniel Carvajal on the sidelines, while even though Federico Valverde was replaced at half-time, the Uruguayan is said to be ready for Saturday’s clash. Unlike Carlo Ancelotti, Vicente Moreno has a full squad available to pick from as there are no injury concerns within Osasuna’s dressing room.
Players to watch
After enduring a slow start to the season, Ante Budimir truly came to life against Barcelona with the experienced striker scoring a brace in Osasuna’s memorable win (4-2) back in late September. Additionally, the 33-year-old scored the winning goal (1-0) against Real Valladolid last weekend and found the net against Real Sociedad the weekend before. The Croatian target man is the joint-third top scorer in LaLiga with six goals, just like Mbappé, Madrid’s no. 9, and with Antonio Rüdiger‘s slump in form as well as abysmal positioning in recent matches, guarding Budimir will be a tricky task for the centre-back and his partner.
Prediction
Even though Real Madrid are viably struggling at the moment and Osasuna are flying high on confidence, it is hard to look past or bet against the world-class quality within Ancelotti’s squad. Furthermore, Los Rojillos’ record at the Bernabéu is discouraging to say the least, and although one cannot expect a goal fest given their recent low-scoring attacking output, a narrow win for Los Blancos is the most realistic scenario. Anything less, and especially if Osasuna were to inflict a third straight home defeat on Madrid, then it would undoubtably be crisis time in the Spanish capital.
(Cover image from IMAGO)
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