Real Madrid are at home to Atletico Madrid in an exciting derby clash at the Santiago Bernabeu in the Primera Division on Saturday.
Zinedine Zidane's side lead La Liga by two points from fierce rivals Barcelona and also have a game in hand after their fixture away to Celta Vigo was postponed in February.
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Real beat Leganes 4-2 on Wednesday, with Atletico cementing their third place over Sevilla by overcoming Real Sociedad with a 1-0 win on Tuesday. Diego Simeone's side are currently 10 points behind Real, having played one more match than Los Blancos.
REAL MADRID INJURIES
Raphael Varane returned to action last weekend, but lasted just 10 minutes in the win over Alaves before picking up another injury and the France defender is now set to be sidelined for a key month of action. He'll miss the derby against Atletico, plus the Clasico clash at home to Barcelona and the double header versus Bayern Munich in the Champions League.
However, Zidane has no other major injury concerns for the derby on Saturday.
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REAL MADRID SUSPENSIONS
Cristiano Ronaldo and Dani Carvajal were both rested in the 4-2 win at Leganes on Wednesday in order to avoid a yellow card that would have seen them suspended for the derby, so Zidane has no players banned for the fixture against Atletico.
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REAL MADRID POTENTIAL STARTING LINE-UP
With the exception of the injured Varane, Zidane has a full-strength squad availabe for the derby against Atletico and the Frenchman will pick a strong side for the visit of the Rojiblancos.
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Zidane, whose only home defeat as Real coach came against Atleti last February, will welcome back Cristiano Ronaldo, Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema after all three were left out on Wednesday at Leganes.
Dani Carvajal, like Ronaldo, was left out of that match to avoid incurring a suspension for the derby and the right-back will also be back in the side on Saturday.
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ATLETICO TEAM NEWS
Atletico Madrid are back in third place after a fantastic run of results in recent weeks and the Rojiblancos could even be dark horses for the title if they beat Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu on Saturday.
Diego Simeone's side have won their previous three league visits to Real - the last of which was at the end of February 2016. No other side in the history of La Liga has won three times in a row at the Bernabeu.
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Striker Kevin Gameiro looks set to miss out after lasting just 10 minutes in training on Friday before limping out, while Sime Vrsaljko, Tiago Mendes and Augusto Fernandez are all sidelined - along with subsistute goalkeeper Miguel Angel Moya.
BEST OPTA MATCH FACTS
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Real Madrid have beaten Atletico Madrid on more occasions than any other team in La Liga history (86).Real Madrid have found the net in 50 consecutive matches in all competitions, the best run ever for a La Liga side.
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Atletico Madrid are the only side in La Liga history to have won at the Santiago Bernabeu on three consecutive trips.
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Real Madrid have scored in 41 consecutive games in La Liga, their best ever run in the competition. In fact, Zidane’s side haven’t been shut out in a game in La Liga since Atletico’s last visit to Bernabeu - 0-1 on February 27th last year.
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Cristiano Ronaldo has scored more goals against Atletico under Diego Simeone than any other player (14 in all competitions).
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Antoine Griezmann has scored in two of his last three games in La Liga at the Santiago Bernabeu (once for Atletico, once for Real Sociedad).
UK TV COVERAGE & KICK-OFF TIME
Real Madrid against Atletico kicks off at 15:15 UK time on Saturday but, due to broadcasting laws in the the country, it cannot be shown live. However, the match will be transmitted later on, starting at 17:30 UK time on Sky Sports 5.
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