Who: Osasuna vs Actual Madrid
What: Spanish LaLiga
The place: El Sadar Stadium, Pamplona, Spain
When: Saturday at 9pm (20:00 GMT)
Comply with Al Jazeera sport’s reside textual content and picture commentary stream of the match.
Defending champions Actual Madrid have the prospect to increase their lead on the prime of LaLiga to 4 factors, even when just for a few hours, after they journey to Osasuna.
Second-placed Atletico Madrid, who drew 1-1 at Actual within the sides’ final outing, are in motion in a while Saturday after they entertain Celta Vigo.
Barcelona, who completed second within the league part of the Champions League, are third within the Spanish prime flight – two factors behind the leaders. The Catalan membership journey to high-flying Rayo Vallecano on Monday.
Together with the house draw with Atletico, Actual misplaced their earlier league match in a shock defeat at Espanyol, including to the strain heading into the subsequent fixture as LaLiga tightens on the prime.
The shape guide shouldn’t be fully towards Carlo Ancelotti’s Actual, nevertheless, as his staff have gained their final two cup matches, together with their 3-2 win at Manchester Metropolis of their Champions League playoff first-leg tie.
What did Ancelotti say about two winless LaLiga matches?
“We’re nicely motivated, and it’s a chance to maintain the lead, which is our objective,” the Madrid supervisor advised reporters on Friday.
“It’s going to be a troublesome sport, clearly, however we did nicely within the final sport, and I feel we have now to substantiate it.
“It’s a sport the place we have now to repeat all the great issues we have now carried out within the sport towards Metropolis.
“The standard of this staff is rarely unsure – that is the best way ahead.
“That is the place the season actually begins.”
📊 DRAMA on the prime and backside of the #LALIGAEASPORTS standings! pic.twitter.com/42bDakX6Il
— LALIGA English (@LaLigaEN) February 13, 2025
Did Ancelotti provide any information on Vinicius Junior’s future at Actual Madrid?
Ancelotti mentioned he’s uninterested in answering questions on hypothesis linking ahead Vinicius Jr with a transfer to Saudi Arabia and as a substitute he wished to deal with how nicely the participant was performing.
Vinicius is believed to be near signing a brand new contract with Actual, however a rumoured transfer to Saudi Arabia was as soon as once more the primary focus on the information convention earlier than Saturday’s LaLiga sport away to Osasuna.
“So many questions. Am I uninterested in this matter? Sure. Am I apprehensive? No. Do I see him pleased? Sure,” Ancelotti mentioned.
“We’re pleased with him. There may be nothing extra so as to add than what I’ve added per week or two weeks in the past. We don’t speak about this matter right here. He doesn’t speak about it both.
“I see him as the identical previous Vinicius with lots of want to do issues proper. He has carried out it very nicely within the final sport.”
Did the Rodri banner at Man Metropolis upset Vinicius?
That final sport for Actual was a 3-2 away win over Metropolis on Tuesday when Vinicius was named participant of the match.
The Brazilian had been the goal of a banner displaying Metropolis midfielder Rodri with the Ballon d’Or trophy with the caption “Cease crying your coronary heart out” in reference to the Actual ahead saying he believed he ought to have gained the award.
“I see him very motivated, particularly due to what he has carried out within the sport towards Metropolis, the place he had lots of strain, and he has endured this strain very nicely, making a distinction within the sport,” Ancelotti mentioned.
“Whether or not he has acquired a suggestion or not, I can let you know what I see right here, a cheerful participant who needs to do issues nicely and make historical past with this membership.”
What are Osasuna’s possibilities towards Actual?
With Actual embroiled in a battle for European survival, Osasuna are hoping to capitalise when the LaLiga leaders arrive at El Sadar.
Los Blancos host Premier League champions Man Metropolis within the second leg of their Champions League playoff on Wednesday.
Osasuna, 2023 Copa del Rey runners-up, are ninth within the league however usually rise to the event when Spain’s largest sides arrive in Pamplona.
In September, they romped to a 4-2 victory over Barcelona, inflicting what was the Catalans’ first league defeat of the season.
Croatian striker Ante Budimir netted twice and with 12 objectives trails solely Barcelona duo Robert Lewandowski and Raphinha and Madrid’s Kylian Mbappe within the standings.
In January, Budimir turned Osasuna’s report abroad objective scorer and has netted 62 for the membership since first arriving on mortgage within the 2020-2021 season from Mallorca earlier than signing completely.
Budimir, 33, netted a brace towards Actual Sociedad in the beginning of this month to earn his staff a powerful victory at El Sadar that ended a nine-game winless run in LaLiga.
“[Budimir] is making historical past. He’s doing his factor, and he retains doing it. He’s not going to cease,” Osasuna coach Vicente Moreno mentioned.
“He works laborious day by day and might go in [good or bad] runs of type, however he’s a participant who has earned his place, and for us, it’s nice he’s placing them away.”
The previous damaging streak was began by a 4-0 defeat by Actual Madrid on the Santiago Bernabeu, which Osasuna will attempt to avenge on Saturday.
10 – Solely Ousmane Dembélé (15) has scored extra objectives in all competitions than Kylian Mbappé (10) in 2025 amongst gamers in Europe’s prime 5 leagues.
On.#MCIRMA #UCL pic.twitter.com/bw2SF50Sy6
— OptaJose (@OptaJose) February 11, 2025
Osasuna staff information
Osasuna will likely be lacking suspended key centre again Flavien Boyomo, who scored their late equaliser on Monday at Mallorca.
Actual Madrid staff information
Madrid have a raft of defenders unavailable via harm. Dani Carvajal and Eder Militao will each miss the rest of the season with knee accidents whereas Actual’s issues on the again worsened earlier than the Metropolis match with Antonio Rudiger and David Alaba each absent from the squad that travelled to Manchester.
Lucas Vazquez was additionally absent for the primary leg with a knock and is unlikely to be risked at Osasuna.
Head-to-head
The groups have confronted one another 46 instances with Actual profitable on 31 events.
Osasuna have walked away with a win in solely 5 of these video games.
Actual are on a five-game profitable streak towards their opponents with Osasuna’s final win coming courtesy of a 1-0 victory in January 2011.
Madrid gained the next season’s league fixtures between the golf equipment 7-1 and 5-1. There have been 22 matches since Osasuna’s final win, of which Madrid have gained 18.
