Real Madrid will be looking for their fifth straight win in all competitions when they travel to Eibar in La Liga this weekend.
Los Blancos have won all four of their matches under interim boss Santiago Solari, and they sit just four points off the top of the table despite already suffering four league defeats this season.
Eibar
Four wins, three draws and five defeats - that is how Eibar have performed in La Liga this season. A total of 15 points has left the Basque outfit in 13th position in the table, just two points off the top seven entering Week 13 in La Liga.
Jose Luis Mendilibar's side have actually only lost one of their last five in Spain's top flight, beating Alaves and drawing with Real Valladolid since suffering a 4-0 defeat at Celta Vigo at the end of last month. Eibar have also already held Atletico Madrid this season, and will certainly believe that they can cause Real Madrid problems this weekend.
Since returning to La Liga for the 2014-15 campaign, Eibar's positions in Spain's top flight have progressively improved. They actually should have been relegated in 2015 having finished in 18th, but Elche's financial problems saw them drop out of the top flight. The 2015-16 campaign then brought a 14th-placed finish, before posting 10th in 2016-17.
Last term, Eibar finished ninth in Spain's top flight, which was their best ever campaign in La Liga. In all honesty, Eibar should not be able to compete at this level, but they have more than proved themselves in recent seasons.
In terms of what is ahead for Mendilibar's team, they will travel to Rayo Vallecano in their final match of the month, before facing Levante, Valencia and Real Betis ahead of the international break. Eibar are two points off the top seven as mentioned, but also just five points clear of the relegation zone, and things can turn quickly at this level.
Goals have been hard to find this term, managing just 12 in their 12 fixtures. Charles is their top scorer with three, but there has not really been a consistent goal-getter for the club this season. Down the other end, Eibar have conceded 18 times, which is actually the same number as Barcelona.
Real Madrid will certainly enter Saturday's match as the favourites, but the European champions only narrowly won the corresponding fixture last term, and while Los Blancos have had a number of players away on international duty, Eibar have had a couple of weeks to prepare for this game.
Recent form: LWDLWD
Recent form (all competitions): DLLWDW
Real Madrid
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Real Madrid have won all four of their matches since Solari took charge on an interim basis, beating Melilla, Real Valladolid, Viktoria Plzen and Celta Vigo across three separate competitions.
It was vital that Los Blancos returned to winning ways in the league as soon as possible, and they beat Valladolid 2-0 at the start of the month before recording a 4-2 victory away to Celta before the international break.
Having suffered four league defeats already this season, Real Madrid should possibly be out of the title race. Other teams have had their problems this season, however, and Los Blancos might sit sixth, but they are just four points off division leaders Barcelona, who will travel to third-placed Atletico Madrid on Saturday night.
Goals were hard to find under Julen Lopetegui earlier this season, but Real Madrid have scored 15 times in their last four matches. Karim Benzema has started the season well, but Gareth Bale has just three La Liga strikes to his name this term, and the Wales international will be desperate for a strong match this weekend.
It is a busy period for Madrid as they prepare to travel to Roma in the Champions League next week before hosting Valencia in La Liga next weekend. Solari's side will then face Melilla in the second leg of their Copa del Rey clash on December 6. There is also the small matter of the Club World Cup in the middle of next month.
Club president Florentino Perez reportedly wants to bring a new striker to the Bernabeu in January to boost the team's options in the second half of the season, having not adequately replaced Cristiano Ronaldo during the summer.
It has been a strange season for Real thus far, but a win this weekend would arguably put them right back in the title race, which is incredible when considering their issues thus far this term.
Recent form: DLLLWW
Recent form (all competitions): WLWWWW
Team News
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Eibar will once again be without the services of Pedro Leon through injury, while Ivan Ramis and Jordi Calavera are also unavailable for the home side this weekend.
Anaitz Arbilla picked up a red card against Valladolid before the international break and also misses out, which should see Pedro Bigas come into the XI.
Fabian Orellana and Marc Cucurella are expected to keep their positions in the final third of the field.
Real Madrid's defensive problems worsened in their 4-2 win over Celta Vigo before the international break, with Nacho, Casemiro and Sergio Reguilon all picking up injuries which rule them out of this game.
There is expected to be some good news on the defensive front, however, with Dani Carvajal, Raphael Varane and Marcelo all in line to return to the XI.
Varane recently recovered from a muscular problem to feature for France during the international break, while full-backs Carvajal and Marcelo have returned to training following calf and hamstring injuries respectively.
Dani Ceballos could take Casemiro's position in the middle of midfield, with Toni Kroos and Luka Modric also starting. Further forward, Bale and Benzema will take two of the three positions, with Lucas Vazquez, Isco and Marco Asensio battling for the final spot in attack.
Eibar possible starting lineup:
Riesgo; Valdes, Oliveira, Bigas, Pena; Diop, Escalante; Orellana, Jordan, Cucurella; Charles
Real Madrid possible starting lineup:
Courtois; Carvajal, Varane, Ramos, Marcelo; Kroos, Ceballos, Modric; Bale, Benzema, Asensio
Head To Head
Real Madrid won both league matches between the two teams last season, following a 3-0 success at the Bernabeu towards the end of 2017 with a 2-1 win at Eibar back in March.
Real Madrid have also twice scored four times away to Eibar in Spain's top flight and have won seven of the eight matches - drawing the other - between these two teams at this level of football.
We say: Eibar 0-2 Real Madrid
Real Madrid are on a bit of a roll at the moment, and we fancy the European champions to continue their strong record against Eibar with a fairly comfortable 2-0 success on Saturday afternoon.
Matt Law
