La Liga: Real Out to Dent Neighbours' Champions League Dreams

Getafe vs Real Madrid

As things currently stand in La Liga, not one, not two, but three Madrid clubs will be headed to the Champions League next season. That’s because surprise package Getafe are still up in fourth place, right behind their more illustrious neighbours, Atletico and Real.

Getafe strengthened their grip on fourth with a convincing 3-0 win over Sevilla, who are one of their main rivals for that final Champions League place.

With fifth-placed Valencia visiting Atletico in midweek, Getafe have a chance to extend their two-point lead. But the Azulones also have a tough test in the form of Real, who will make the short trip to visit the Coliseum Alfonso Perez.

While Real have no more trophies left to play for this season, they should still be eager to win in order to keep pace with rivals Atletico for second in the standings.

Talking Points

Getafe going great guns at home

When Getafe were flying high earlier in the season, many expected them to fade later in the campaign. But instead, the opposite has occurred; they have arguably grown stronger as the year has gone on.

With their win over Sevilla, Getafe have now gone undefeated in 11 of their last 12 La Liga matches (six wins, five draws).

Getafe’s La Liga 2019 results at home have been especially impressive. They’ve won six of their last seven at the Coliseum Alfonso Perez, with their lone defeat coming against mid-table Leganes.

Although, it should be noted that three of their other four losses have come against the other members of the current top five: Atletico Madrid, Valencia, and Barcelona.

Getafe will likely look to keep it relatively tight at the back and make it hard for Real to break them down. They have allowed just 11 goals at home this season, which is tied for third-best in the league.

Getafe’s attack admittedly isn’t all that special — two of their three goals against 10-man Sevilla came from penalties — but they at least have two capable forwards in Jaime Mata and Jorge Moreno.

The two have combined for 27 of the team’s 43 league goals this season and are both in the top 10 of the goalscoring charts.

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La Liga

Zidane still waiting for an away win

Zinedine Zidane’s second stint as Real Madrid manager is now six games old, and while it’s still pretty early, a certain pattern of results has emerged.

Real remain undefeated in their four home matches with Zidane back. They thumped Athletic Bilbao 3-0 at the Bernabeu last time out, with Karim Benzema firing home a terrific hat-trick.

Benzema has been in absolutely brilliant form of late. He’s now scored 10 goals in his last seven games and has added three assists as well.

After the match, Zidane even went so far as to say that Benzema is the best No. 9 in the world. And based on his current play at the moment, Benzema is proving that at the very least, he should be part of that conversation.

But despite Benzema’s brilliance, Real remain winless away from home under Zizou. While a 2-1 defeat at Valencia was somewhat understandable, they also dropped points away to Leganes, which was less so.

Prior to Zidane’s return, Real had gone seven matches undefeated away from home in La Liga, with six wins and a draw.

With Real’s undoubted quality, though, it’s just a matter of time before they return to winning ways away from home. And the history between them and their city neighbours suggests that Real should finally get that first away win.

La Liga Getafe vs Real Madrid: Zinedine Zidane's men are set to face face a tough opponent — Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane watching his team play during their match against Eibar

History

To say Getafe’s head-to-head record against Real Madrid isn’t great would be a massive understatement. The Azulones have lost each of their last 10 La Liga fixtures against Real, and 17 of the last 18. Real beat Getafe in this season’s opening game 2-0, with Dani Carvajal and Gareth Bale scoring the goals.

But it should be noted that this Getafe side is much better than the ones who suffered all those losses over the past few years, which is why the La Liga 2019 betting odds for this match are somewhat close. And of the five wins, Getafe have had over Madrid in the last 14 years, four have been at home.

Betting Tip

	Getafe vs Real Madrid	Real Madrid 1X2 @ 1.98
	April 26, 03:30 (GMT+8)

Getafe have had a brilliant season and will clearly be no pushover at home. SBOBET odds have a Getafe home win priced at 3.85 and a draw at 3.45 in the 1X2 market.

But Real are just too good to continue dropping points away from home. With Benzema in incredible form, they should have just enough to eke out their first away win since Zidane’s return — and continue their amazing dominance over their neighbours.