Preview: Real Madrid vs Levante - prediction, team news, lineups

Fresh from back-to-back defeats, Real Madrid will resume their La Liga campaign on Saturday afternoon with a clash against a struggling Levante outfit.

Los Blancos are currently second in the La Liga table, four points behind the leaders and reigning champions Barcelona, while Levante are down in 19th spot in the division.

Match preview

Well, it has been some start to 2026 for Real Madrid.

At the beginning of the year, there were no signs of Xabi Alonso losing his job at the helm, but the Spaniard left Bernabeu by "mutual consent" the day after a 3-2 defeat to Barcelona in the Spanish Super Cup final, with Alvaro Arbeloa placed in charge.

Arbeloa was in the dug-out for Wednesday's Copa del Rey contest with Segunda Division outfit Albacete, and it proved to be a hugely disappointing night for Los Blancos, who were eliminated from the competition in the round of 16 courtesy of a 3-2 loss.

Real Madrid cannot dwell on what has been a turbulent start to 2026, especially as there is a lot of work to do in La Liga, with the capital giants second in the table, four points behind Barcelona, who are currently in excellent form.

Los Blancos will also be looking to secure their spot in the knockout round of the Champions League before the end of the month, with the team ending their league stage campaign against Monaco and Benfica on January 20 and January 28 respectively.

Real Madrid have won seven and lost one of their eight home league matches this season, while Levante have eight points to show from their nine matches on their travels.

Levante will enter Saturday's match off the back of a three-game unbeaten run in La Liga, drawing with Real Sociedad and Espanyol either side of a 3-0 success over Sevilla.

Luis Castro was appointed the club's new head coach on December 20, and it has been a positive start for the 45-year-old, picking up four points from his two matches at the helm.

The Frogs have a record of three wins, five draws and 10 defeats from their 18 league matches this season, which has left them 19th in the table on 14 points, four points behind 17th-placed Mallorca with a game in hand.

Levante have lost 6-0 and 4-1 to Real Madrid in the last two meetings between the two sides, but the Valencia outfit actually won 2-1 at Bernabeu in January 2021.

The Frogs will know that they are up against it on Saturday, but they will be looking to take advantage of the current uncertainty in the ranks at Real Madrid.

Real Madrid La Liga form:

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Real Madrid form (all competitions):

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Levante La Liga form:

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Levante form (all competitions):

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Team News

Trent Alexander-Arnold (thigh), Eder Militao (hamstring), Brahim Diaz (AFCON) and Ferland Mendy (hamstring) remain unavailable for selection for Real Madrid, while Antonio Rudiger (knee) is facing a late fitness test.

Jude Bellingham, Thibaut Courtois, Alvaro Carreras, Kylian Mbappe, Rodrygo and Aurelien Tchouameni were all rested against Albacete in the Copa del Rey, and all six are set to return to the starting side on Saturday afternoon.

There could also be a start at right-back for Dani Carvajal, with the 34-year-old coming off the bench against Albacete, and his introduction would allow Federico Valverde to push into his favoured midfield position.

As for Levante, Roger Brugue (knee), Unai Elgezabal (knee) and Victor Garcia (hamstring) will miss the match, but the visitors are otherwise in good shape.

Etta Eyong has missed three of Levante's last four La Liga matches due to his involvement in the Africa Cup of Nations, but the striker was a late substitute against Espanyol last time out and is now set to come back into the XI.

There should also be a spot through the middle for Ivan Romero, who has come up with four goals and two assists in 15 La Liga matches this season.

Real Madrid possible starting lineup:

Courtois; Carvajal, Asencio, Huijsen, Carreras; Valverde, Tchouameni, Bellingham; Rodrygo, Mbappe, Vinicius

Levante possible starting lineup:

Ryan; Toljan, De la Fuente, Moreno, Pampin; Martinez, Arriaga; Eyong, Alvarez, Losada; Romero

We say: Real Madrid 3-1 Levante

This is a match that Real Madrid dare not lose.

Levante are capable of making it an uncomfortable game, but we are finding it incredibly difficult to predict anything other than a home success for Arbeloa's side.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.