In the last match day, Espanyol lost three players. First, Felipe Caicedo was carried away on a stretcher, then his attacking partner Gerard Moreno earned a red card. In the dispute over the red card, midfielder Victor Alvarez received a yellow card, which got him suspended for the upcoming match. The result was the loss of three key players. Moreover, due to the loan agreement, Marco Asensio, who is the Budgerigars head passer, won’t play, either.
I do not like conspiracy theories, but in fact, Espanyol traditionally plays without the maximum motivation against Real Madrid, to put it mildly. Now, taking into account the significant losses in the roster, the situation becomes even more apparent. It seems to me, that Madrid will win with a big margin.
Real Madrid have got only two problems. There is no one to adequately replace Gareth Bale, who was in stunning form before the injury, well, plus the team recently trained under a heavy workload to be in the best shape before the first leg of the Champions League playoffs. The league calendar will become more difficult for Madrid then. Meanwhile, now it’s a perfect time for an easy home game for Real Madrid. I think that even without Bale, the Budgerigars will be torn into tiny feathers.