Real Madrid vs. Villarreal: Preview and betting tips

La Liga continues with the 28th round, with Real Madrid vs Villarreal on Saturday night at 9pm. While the hosts are no longer struggling for much, the Yellow Submarine, on the other hand, are in a big fight for the cups.

Real Madrid will go into the match with a big boost. In Wednesday’s El Clásico, they blanked Barcelona 4-0 and advanced to the Copa del Rey final.

In addition, last weekend Los Blancos thrashed Real Valladolid 6-0, scoring 10 goals in their last two games.

You could say that they are very comfortable there and will be clear favourites. But other factors come into play.

Real are no longer playing for much in La Liga, they are 12 points behind Barcelona and the title defence is practically in the balance. In addition, Los Blancos face a Champions League quarter-final against Chelsea on Wednesday, which has a much higher priority.

It is thus quite likely that Carlo Ancelotti will spare some mainstays. Moreover, Villarreal is a very unpopular opponent for the royal club, having failed to beat them even once in the last three league games.

Both September 2021 and February 2022 produced goalless draws, while in January this year Villarreal even managed a 2-1 win at Estadio de la Ceramica.

El submarino amarillo has a lot to play for. With 44 points they are sixth in La Liga, which guarantees the Conference League. But Villarreal logically wants to go higher.

Especially as fifth-placed Betis have just one point more. And fourth-placed Real Sociedad has no lead either, having accumulated 48 points. Villarreal is therefore well within reach of not only the Europa League but also the Champions League.

Even considering Villarreal’s ability to prepare for Real, the importance of picking up points, and the large rotation in the home team, I think the visitors won’t lose at the Santiago Bernabéu.

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