Preview: A chance for Ancelotti’s men to reach La Liga's summit
Granada have not scored away from home in 2014 and Saturday’s clash will only be their second as visitors. After going down 3-0 at Almeria, they seem to have little hopes of record a decent result at the Santiago Bernabeu.
Granada are a mid-table team with 24 points. While they are eight points safe from the relegation zone, they could fancy their chances of playing in Europe come next season. At the very least, Lucas Alcaraz will want his players to showcase character against Real Madrid.
Evidently, the pressure is on the hosts who grabbed a narrow 1-0 win in the first leg of this fixture back in August 2013. The three-horse race in La Liga is truly on with Barcelona and Atletico Madrid counting 51 points each. Former league champions Real Madrid could leapfrog both on Saturday as Atleti and Barca only play on Sunday – against Rayo Vallecano and Malaga respectively.
“This [match] gives us a chance to be leader, even if it could be for just one night. We were six points behind. So this could be an important game for us, for the season,” Ancelotti declared on Friday.
“We have a lot of games at the moment, and are doing very well, but we must be careful as any game can be dangerous. We must prepare well.”
Los Blancos could record their sixth clean sheet on the trot as Diego Lopez – like Iker Casillas in the Copa del Rey – is yet to concede a goal in La Liga.
POS. | TEAM | MP | W | D | L | GF | GA | D | P | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
PRIMERA DIVISIÓN 2013/2014 | ||||||||||
1 | Barcelona | 20 | 16 | 3 | 1 | 54 | 13 | +41 | 51 | |
2 | Atlético Madrid | 20 | 16 | 3 | 1 | 48 | 12 | +36 | 51 | |
3 | Real Madrid | 20 | 16 | 2 | 2 | 58 | 21 | +37 | 50 | |
4 | Athletic Club | 20 | 12 | 3 | 5 | 36 | 26 | +10 | 39 |
Where to watch the match – live stream, start time, TV channels, live scores
Watch Real Madrid vs Granada live on Saturday, January 25, 2014:
In Canada at 10:00 ET:
Canada | beIN Sports Play Canada |
In USA at 10:00 ET:
United States | beIN Sports USA, beIN Sports Play, beIN Sports en Español |
Check out the Real Madrid-Granada match page for worldwide broadcast information and live scores during the game.