Real Madrid vs Girona: TV channel, live stream, team news & preview

With one foot into the quarter-finals of the Champions League secured following their controversial win over Ajax on Wednesday , Real Madrid return to domestic matters when they host Girona in La Liga on Sunday.

Santiago Solari’s side sit nine points off league leaders Barcelona with 15 games left this season – and Los Blancos will still harbour hopes of breaking the Catalan club’s stronghold on the title.

They host a side they defeated in the last eight of the Copa del Rey in January by an aggregate scoreline of 7-3 – but they will need to prevail once more without Ballon d’Or winner Luka Modric.

The Croatia captain and 2018 World Cup finalist misses out with through a yellow card suspension as Eusebio Sacristan’s side hope to replicate their famous upset of 2017 at Santiago Bernabeu.

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TV Channel, Live Stream & How To Watch

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In the United States (US), the game can be watched live and on-demand with fuboTV (7-day free trial ) .

New users can sign up for a free seven-day trial of the live sports streaming service, which can be accessed via iOS, Android, Chromecast, Amazon Fire TV, Roku and Apple TV as well as on a web browser.

In the United Kingdom (UK), the game will not be broadcast on television. It will be available for streaming with Eleven Sports however.

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Squads & Team News

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Real Madrid starting XI: Courtois; Odriozola, Varane, Ramos, Marcelo; Ceballos, Casemiro, Kroos; Asensio, Benzema, Lucas Vazquez

Girona starting XI:  Bono, Ramalho, Alcala, Granell, Stuani, Pere Pons, Portu, Douglas Luiz, Raul Carnero, Juanpe, Pedro Porro

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Betting & Match Odds

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Madrid are the favourites to pick up the three points on their own turf and are odds-on at 1/6 with bet365 . Girona are priced a more distant 14/1 while a draw is available for half the length at 7/1.

Click here to see more offers for the game, including goalscoring markets, correct score predictions and more.

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Match Preview

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Getty

With an away goal advantage achieved through their somewhat contentious victory against Ajax in the Netherlands midweek in the Champions League, Real Madrid remain on track to defend their European crown.

However, Los Blancos now return their attentions to domestic concerns as they look to keep the gap between them and key rivals Barcelona to a minimum in their pursuit of La Liga glory when they host Girona on Sunday.

The Catalan club lead Santiago Solari’s side by nine points heading into this match and remain odds-on favourites to retain their title.

Indeed, only four months ago, Ernesto Valverde’s outfit’s hopes of nabbing the crown again looked a foregone conclusion.

But since succeeding Julen Lopetegui in the hot seat at Santiago Bernabeu, Solari has managed to revive Madrid’s hopes – and the coach pledged to fight every step of the way in the title race last weekend following victory against rivals Atletico.

“Real Madrid fight for everything until the end - it's not over, it's historic,” he told reporters.

“Now we are second, now we have to keep this up and keep winning. We have our feet on the ground and know that we have to keep working.”

Fans may harbour hopes that the visit of Girona, a side they have already inflicted three heavy defeats upon this season, will be another routine win as the Solari experiment continues to build towards a potentially glorious crescendo.

But Madrid will be missing arguably their greatest asset, with Croatia captain and Ballon d’Or holder Luka Modric set to miss out through suspension.

The midfielder picked up a yellow card against Atletico last time out in La Liga that saw him handed a one-match suspension.

The hosts will at least be able to call upon Sergio Ramos, who will serve a similar ban in the Champions League following a booking in Amsterdam on Wednesday – although the Spaniard could face a lengthier continental ban after appearing to admit he earned it intentionally to avoid missing a potential last eight match.

Eusebio Sacristan will meanwhile look to the past to inspire his side, with the memory of their shock 2-1 win in 2017  still likely to be fresh in their minds.

Cristhian Stuani, who netted in that famous victory, will be expected to be key to any chances of repeating the feat almost 16 months on.