Who: Real Madrid vs Mallorca
What: Spanish La Liga
Where: Santiago Bernabeu in Madrid, Spain
When: Saturday, August 30 at 9:30pm (19:30 GMT)
How to follow: We’ll have all the build-up on Al Jazeera Sport from 6:30pm (16:30 GMT) in advance of our live text commentary stream.
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Real Madrid sit joint-top of La Liga with four other teams after winning both of their opening matches, setting up Saturday’s clash with struggling Mallorca, who are 16th with one point from two games.
It is Real manager Xabi Alonso’s first season in charge at Santiago Bernabeu, so the former Los Blancos midfielder has a spotlight focused tightly on him, especially given the side’s limp FIFA Club World Cup exit at the hands of Paris Saint-Germain.
Al Jazeera Sport takes a look a closer look at a clash that Alonso’s Madrid will be fully expected to win against struggling Mallorca.
What are Real Madrid’s results in La Liga this season?
The record La Liga winners opened the new domestic Spanish season with a 1-0 win against Osasuna, thanks to Kylian Mbappe’s penalty. The Madrid-based club stormed to a 3-0 win against Real Oviedo in their second game.
How have Mallorca fared in La Liga this season?
Mallorca have been handed a tough start with the trip to Madrid coming only two games after a meeting with Barcelona in their season opener.
The Catalan club emerged victorious with a 3-0 win. Mateu Morey then saved the islanders from back-to-back defeats with an 87th-minute equaliser in a 1-1 home draw with Celta Vigo.
Will Vinicius Junior start for Real Madrid?
Real Madrid manager Xabi Alonso doubled down on his decision to leave Brazilian winger Vinicius Junior out of his starting lineup, insisting every player must fight for their place despite the FIFA world player of the year’s heroics off the bench.
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The move paid off last Sunday as Vinicius came on as a substitute to help Real Madrid win 3-0 at Oviedo, providing an assist for Mbappe’s second goal before netting himself.
When asked about the impact of benching such a high-profile player, Alonso remained unfazed.
“In the dressing room, the key thing is that everyone is willing to contribute, whether on the pitch or off it,” he told a news conference on Friday. “Really believing in this is fundamental. And here, everyone does.”
The Real Madrid boss heaped praise on the Brazilian’s response. “I’m very happy with Vini. Against Oviedo, he showed that he can have a big impact coming off the bench. We’re just getting started … and he’s going to be crucial.”
Is Rodrygo available for transfer from Real Madrid?
Alonso has also backed Rodrygo, who replaced Vinicius on the left wing for his first start since their Club World Cup clash against Al Hilal in June.
The Brazilian forward has been heavily linked with a move away from the Spanish giants since the arrival of Alonso, but appears to be playing his way into the new coach’s plans.
“He has performed at his best in different positions. He has played as a 9 and even a 10. But I think the left wing is a very good position for him,” Alonso said.
However, the Spaniard did not disclose whether Rodrygo would start ahead of Vinicius again this weekend.
“It wouldn’t be very smart of me to tell you what I’m going to do, put him as a starter or on the left wing again,” he said with a laugh. “We’ll see.”
This is the 50th meeting between the clubs, with Real Madrid winning on 29 occasions, while Mallorca have emerged victorious from 13 of the encounters.
Mallorca have not beaten Los Blancos in five matches, losing four of those games.
Their last win at Santiago Bernabeu came in May 2009, when the home side were on a run of five defeats to end that La Liga campaign, resulting in a finish nine points behind champions Barcelona.
Real Madrid team news
Alonso remains without the services of Jude Bellingham, Endrick, Ferland Mendy and Eduardo Camavinga, who are all injured.
Mallorca team news
Vedat Muriqi and Manu Morlanes return from suspensions.
Pablo Torre arrived from Real Madrid’s fierce rivals, Barcelona, earlier this year, and is expected to start in the number 10 position.
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Real Madrid predicted starting lineup
Courtois; Carvajal, Rudiger, Huijsen, Carreras; Valverde, Tchouameni, Guler; Mastantuono, Mbappe, Vinicius
Mallorca predicted starting lineup
Roman; Kumbulla, Raillo, Valjent; Morlanes, Darder, Lato, Mojica; Torre; Muriqi, Asano