How Real Madrid could line up against Real Betis

Real Madrid will be attempting to secure their 22nd La Liga victory of the season when they welcome fifth-placed Real Betis to the Spanish capital this weekend.

Los Blancos, who beat Cadiz 3-0 on Wednesday to rise to the top of the table, will again be without the services of Sergio Ramos, Lucas Vazquez and Ferland Mendy on Saturday through injury.

Federico Valverde will also be absent as he recovers from coronavirus, but there is a chance that Eden Hazard could be involved as he continues to battle to recover from a muscular problem.

Luka Modric and Toni Kroos were both left out against Cadiz, with the former tweaking his back during a training session on Tuesday, while the latter is thought to have a slight muscular problem.

Kroos is expected to return to the side this weekend, though, and there could also be a start for Dani Carvajal, who made his return from injury off the bench against Cadiz.

Head coach Zinedine Zidane is expected to stick with a three-man defence, while Marcelo should keep his spot due to the absence of Mendy, who has a muscular problem.

There could be a change in the final third of the field, though, with Marco Asensio coming in for Rodrygo Goes to line up alongside Karim Benzema and Vinicius Junior.

Zidane is expected to resist the temptation to make wholesale changes ahead of the Champions League clash with Chelsea, though, meaning that the likes of Raphael Varane and Casemiro should feature once again.

Real Madrid possible starting lineup: Courtois; Militao, Varane, Nacho; Carvajal, Casemiro, Kroos, Marcelo; Vinicius, Benzema, Asensio

> Click here to see how Real Betis could line up for this contest