Real Madrid will be looking to make it three La Liga victories in a row when they continue their 2020-21 campaign away to Levante on Sunday afternoon.
Los Blancos have collected seven points from their three league games this season to sit third in the table, while Levante have picked up three points from an available nine to occupy 13th position.
Match preview
© Reuters
Levante opened their 2020-21 campaign with a 4-2 defeat at Valencia on September 13 before putting three points on the board two weeks later courtesy of a 3-1 success at Osasuna.
Paco Lopez's side could not build on the victory over Osasuna but can be proud of their overall performance against Sevilla on Thursday, which ended in a 1-0 win for the Europa League holders.
The Frogs finished 12th in La Liga last season, which was their highest placing since 2013-14, and it would not be a surprise to see them in a similar position at the end of this campaign.
Levante actually recorded a 1-0 victory over Madrid when the two teams last locked horns in February, with Jose Luis Morales coming up with the winner in the 79th minute of the contest.
© Reuters
Madrid, as mentioned, have picked up seven points from an available nine this season, which has left them in third position in the table heading into the next set of fixtures.
The reigning champions opened their title defence with a 0-0 draw at Real Sociedad but have been victorious in their last two against Real Betis and Real Valladolid.
Zinedine Zidane's side actually found Valladolid a tough nut to crack in the capital on Wednesday night, but Vinicius Junior came off the bench to score the winner in the 65th minute.
Los Blancos will be looking for another victory on Sunday ahead of the international break, particularly considering that there is a league game with Barcelona at Camp Nou on the horizon.
The financial impact of the coronavirus impact means that Madrid have been unable to make a big-money signings this summer, and there is a lot of pressure on those at the club to perform.
Levante La Liga form: LWL
Real Madrid La Liga form: DWW
Team News
© Reuters
Levante will again be without the services of Hernani through injury, while Cheick Doukoure is also unlikely to be available, but the home side are otherwise in good shape when it comes to absentees.
Morales could again be joined by Gonzalo Melero in the final third of the field, although it seems more likely that Roger Marti will return to the starting XI to partner the former in attack.
Lopez's side were impressive in defeat at Sevilla, meaning that the bulk of the XI should again feature here, with Nemanja Radoja and Nikola Vukcevic set to operate in midfield.
As for Madrid, Dani Carvajal is facing two months on the sidelines with a knee injury, meaning that Alvaro Odriozola is set to keep his spot at right-back for Sunday's contest.
Eden Hazard has also suffered an injury setback and will again miss out, but Eder Militao could shake off a muscular problem to feature.
Mariano Diaz is still on the sidelines as he recovers from tonsil surgery, while Toni Kroos again looks likely to be absent ,with the Germany international struggling to overcome a muscular issue.
There are expected to be changes from the clash against Valladolid, with Marco Asensio and Vinicius in line for starts, while Ferland Mendy should replace Marcelo at left-back for the champions.
Levante possible starting lineup:
Fernandez; Son, Duarte, Vezo, Tono; Bardhi, Radoja, Vukcevic, Campana; Morales, Roger Marti
Real Madrid possible starting lineup:
Courtois; Odriozola, Varane, Ramos, Mendy; Casemiro, Modric, Valverde; Vinicius, Benzema, Asensio
We say: Levante 1-3 Real Madrid
Madrid have not quite hit full flow in the opening weeks of the season, but a return of seven points from three matches still represents a strong start. Los Blancos will be determined to put another victory on the board, and we fully expect the champions to triumph this weekend.
Top betting tip
Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting an away win in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.Away Win:data
Matt Law
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Real Madrid win with a probability of 67.66%. A draw had a probability of 19.3% and a win for Levante had a probability of 13.05%.
The most likely scoreline for a Real Madrid win was 0-2 with a probability of 12.07%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 0-1 (11.41%) and 1-2 (9.71%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (9.17%), while for a Levante win it was 1-0 (4.33%). The actual scoreline of 0-2 was predicted with a 12.1% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted a 0-2 win for Real Madrid in this match.
