La Liga | Gameweek 24

Feb 15, 2025 at 3.15pm UK

Estadio El Sadar

Osasuna vs Real Madrid

Match preview

Osasuna have won seven, drawn ten and lost six of their 23 league games this term, picking up 31 points to sit in ninth place, just four points behind sixth-placed Rayo Vallecano in the race for Europe.

Los Rojillos go into the game off the back of a 1-1 draw with Mallorca, with Enzo Boyomo securing a point in the 94th minute after Vedat Muriqi had put Mallorca ahead from the penalty spot in the 81st minute.

Vicente Moreno's side are now unbeaten in their last four league games, three of which have ended in draws, although they did beat Real Sociedad 2-1 in front of their own fans earlier this month.

Osasuna finished 11th last season, but they were seventh in 2022-23 and have their sights set on a top-six finish for the first time since finishing fourth in 2005-06, so there is plenty to play for in the final months of the campaign.

The Pamplona side are on a five-match losing streak against Real Madrid in all competitions, including a 4-0 defeat when the two sides met at the Bernabeu in November.

Real Madrid, meanwhile, go into the game on the back of a 3-2 victory over Manchester City in the first leg of their Champions League knockout play-off on Wednesday night.

Los Blancos trailed 1-0 and 2-1 at the Etihad Stadium but came back to level on both occasions before Jude Bellingham's last-gasp winner put the reigning European champions in an excellent position ahead of next week's return leg at the Bernabeu.

Real Madrid, meanwhile, have taken just one point from their last two league games, losing 1-0 to Espanyol at the start of February before holding Atletico Madrid to a 1-1 draw in the Madrid derby last weekend.

Carlo Ancelotti's side sit top of the table, a point clear of second-placed Atletico and two ahead of third-placed Barcelona, and the race for the title is shaping up to be an intriguing one in the final months of the season.

Real Madrid have the second-best away record in La Liga this season, taking 22 points from their 12 away games, but have only won half of them, while Osasuna have the fifth-best home record in the Spanish top flight this term.

Recent Performance

Osasuna La Liga form:LLDDWD

Osasuna form (all competitions):WDDWLD

Real Madrid La Liga form:WWWWLD

Real Madrid form (all competitions):WWLWDW

Team News

Osasuna will be without the services of Raul Garcia due to an ankle problem, while Boyomo is suspended for the yellow card he received just before scoring against Mallorca last time out.

Jorge Herrando is likely to feature in the back four, but otherwise Moreno could name an unchanged side, with Bryan Zaragoza and Ruben Garcia in the wide positions.

Ante Budimir has scored 12 times in La Liga this season and the experienced striker will once again lead the line.

Real Madrid are without Lucas Vazquez, David Alaba, Antonio Rudiger, Eder Militao and Dani Carvajal due to injury, but the capital giants did not pick up any new problems against Man City.

Ancelotti could name an unchanged side on Saturday, with Raul Asencio likely to continue alongside Aurelien Tchouameni at the heart of defence due to the absentees.

Dani Ceballos is currently benefiting from a run in the side and that is likely to continue this weekend, while Luka Modric may have to settle for more football from the bench on Saturday.

Brahim Diaz came off the bench against Man City, but is unlikely to be in contention for a starting berth, with Rodrygo likely to play alongside Kylian Mbappe, Vinicius Junior and Bellingham in the final third of the field.

Possible starting lineup

Osasuna possible starting lineup:

Herrera; Areso, Herrando, Catena, Cruz; Ruben Garcia, Moncayola, Torro, Oroz, Zaragoza; Budimir

Real Madrid possible starting lineup:

Courtois; Valverde, Tchouameni, Asencio, Mendy; Camavinga, Ceballos; Rodrygo, Bellingham, Vinicius; Mbappe