play pause open Close
 
Played
September 2, 2012 6:50 PM BST
Estadio Santiago Bernabéu — Madrid
Referee:‬ José González‎
Attendance:‬ 70000‎
 

Real Madrid - Granada Preview: Los Blancos look to bag first Liga win of the season

The champions will be out to build on their Supercopa triumph when they welcome Juan Antonio Anquela's relegation candidates to the Santiago Bernabeu

By Karthick Arvinth

Real madrid players celebrating with spanish supercup
Real madrid players celebrating with spanish supercup
  PROBABLE LINE-UPS

REAL MADRID

Casillas
Arbeloa, Pepe, Ramos, Marcelo
Khedira, Alonso
Di Maria, Modric, Ronaldo
Benzema
GRANADA

Tono
Nyom, Lopez, Gomez, Siqueira
Iriney, Lucena, M Rico
El-Arabi, Floro Flores, Orellana


Luka Modric could make his first start for Real Madrid against Granada after coming on as a late substitute and impressing in the 2-1 midweek victory over Barcelona.

Boss Jose Mourinho has no fresh injury concerns, with the suspended Fabio Coentrao being the only player unavailable for selection.

Granada's Manolo Lucena should play, despite suffering a knock to his knee during training.

Senegalese defender Pape Diakhate has returned from a serious ankle injury and is available again, while midfield pair Fran Rico and Hassan Yebda are still out.

  DID YOU KNOW?
  • Real Madrid are on a two-match winless run in La Liga. The last time they went three games without a victory in the league was in May 2009.
  • Los Blancos did the double over Granada in the previous campaign, with this corresponding fixture last season ending 5-1 in favour of the home side.
  • Madrid have been drawn in Group D for the Champions League group stage alongside Manchester City, Borussia Dortmund and Ajax.
  • Granada are on a four-game winless run in La Liga, stretching into the back end of the previous campaign.
  • The Andalusians lost 14 of their 19 away games in the Primera Division last season.
  • Fran Rico (pictured right) made 52 appearances for Real Madrid's reserve team between 2008-2011, scoring 11 goals.


Field Report
Reader's Predictions
Top 3 Predictions
Head to Head
Spain - Primera Division ‎(LIGA)‎ Feb 2, 2013 Granada 1 - Real Madrid CF 0
  • Player Ratings
  • Match Report
  • Play by Play
  • Preview
Spain - Primera Division ‎(LIGA)‎ Sep 2, 2012 Real Madrid CF 3 - Granada 0
  • Player Ratings
  • Match Report
  • Play by Play
  • Preview
Spain - Primera Division ‎(LIGA)‎ May 5, 2012 Granada 1 - Real Madrid CF 2
  • Player Ratings
  • Match Report
  • Play by Play
  • Preview
Spain - Primera Division ‎(LIGA)‎ Jan 7, 2012 Real Madrid CF 5 - Granada 1
  • Player Ratings
  • Match Report
  • Play by Play
  • Preview
Last Five Matches
Odds
Returns: Real Madrid £11.00 PaddyPower Sign up to Paddy Power for £250 in free bets
Returns: Draw £460.00 WilliamHill Sign up with William Hill for a free bet up to £25
Returns: Granada £1010.00 Bet365 Sign up with bet365 for a free bet up to £200
Team News
Available Squads
1Iker CasillasGoalkeeper
3PepeDefender
4Sergio RamosDefender
12MarceloDefender
17ArbeloaDefender
6Sami KhediraMidfielder
14Xabi AlonsoMidfielder
16Luka ModricMidfielder
21CallejónStriker
7Cristiano RonaldoStriker
9Karim BenzemaStriker
13AdánGoalkeeper
19Raphaël VaraneDefender
18Raúl Albiol TortajadaDefender
8KakáMidfielder
10Mesut ÖzilMidfielder
22Ángel Di MaríaMidfielder
20Gonzalo HiguaínStriker
-ToñoGoalkeeper
2Allan NyomDefender
6Guilherme SiqueiraDefender
8Íñigo LópezDefender
9Borja GómezDefender
14Mikel RicoMidfielder
-Juanma OrtizMidfielder
-IrineyMidfielder
15Youssef El ArabiStriker
19Fabián OrellanaStriker
83Antonio Floro FloresStriker
13RobertoGoalkeeper
5MainzDefender
-Brayam AnguloDefender
75RomeroMidfielder
20Moisés HurtadoMidfielder
27Darwin MachísStriker
-Gabriel TorjeMidfielder
Players to Watch
Luka Modric
Luka Modric
Position: Midfielder
Squad Number: 16
Games Goals YC RC
31 3 8 0
The Croatia playmaker showed some promising touches on his debut against Barcelona and nearly capped his short cameo with a goal. While a midfield combining the creative talents of Modric and Xabi Alonso appears formidable, the former Tottenham Hotspur man was utilised in a more advanced role in the Supercopa, suggesting he may be given Mesut Ozil's job to play those trademark raking passes to the forwards.
Antonio Floro Flores
Antonio Floro Flores
Position: Striker
Squad Number: 83
Games Goals YC RC
0 0 0 0
The on-loan Udinese striker has started both games for Granada this campaign and is expected to be picked again, despite publicly expressing dissent at being substituted during the opening defeat at Rayo Vallecano. The tall Italian could pose problems during set-pieces for the Madrid backline, which has looked unconvincing when dealing with crosses coming into the box.
Prediction
Real were excellent going forward in the Supercopa and deserved to beat Barcelona by a bigger scoreline, while the return of Pepe also made them defensively solid. Mourinho will demand similar performances from his players week in, week out in La Liga, especially after last weekend's debacle at Getafe.
Editor's Prediction
Results
 
Top Scorers
Player   Goals Penalties
Lionel Messi Lionel Messi
Striker
Barcelona
46 4
Cristiano Ronaldo Cristiano Ronaldo
Striker
Real Madrid
34 6
Radamel Falcao Radamel Falcao
Striker
Atl. Madrid
28 8
Roberto Soldado Roberto Soldado
Striker
Valencia
21 5
Negredo Negredo
Striker
Sevilla
20 3