Real Madrid return to La Liga action against Mallorca on Sunday afternoon and they will be bidding to make it seven straight wins in all competitions at the start of the 2022-23 campaign.Los Blancos have made a perfect start to their La Liga campaign, beating Almeria, Celta Vigo, Espanyol and Real Betis to sit top of the division on 12 points, two points clear of second-placed Barcelona, who will believe that they can launch a strong challenge for the title this term.Real Madrid enjoyed a brilliant 2021-22 campaign, winning a La Liga and Champions League double, and they have already claimed silverware for this season, beating Eintracht Frankfurt 2-0 in the UEFA Super Cup on August 10.No kidding with Cholo’s crew: Celta concede four at Wanda MetropolitanoLos Blancos, who are top of the table, will enter the match off the back of a 3-0 victory over Celtic in the Champions League, while 11th-placed Mallorca drew 1-1 with Girona in the league last time out.Mallorca finished 16th in La Liga last season on their return to the top flight, and they are bidding to make it successive campaigns at this level of football for the first time since 2013.Carlo Ancelotti’s team have not lost at Bernabeu in La Liga since Barcelona beat them 4-0 back in March, while they are unbeaten against Mallorca in Madrid since May 2009, including a 6-1 victory over the Pirates in the corresponding league fixture last term. Javier Aguirre’s side will take on Real Madrid and Barcelona in two of their next three matches, and they are not the fixtures that will determine whether the team can avoid relegation this term.This is how @diarioas expect Real Madrid to line-up against Real Mallorca this lunchtime.The headline is of course the start for Eden Hazard, but Ancelotti is planning further rotation too.#RealMadridRCDMallorca #Real Madrid pic.twitter.com/XYHpo59Jhb— Football España (@footballespana_) September 11, 2022 As far as the rosters go – Real Madrid will definitely be without the services of Karim Benzema and Eder Militao for this weekend’s contest, with the duo picking up injuries against Celtic last time out.Eduardo Camavinga is pushing for a spot in the side, meanwhile, and the France international could potentially take the place of Luka Modric, with the Croatian set to be rested; Rodrygo could also come in for Federico Valverde.Eden Hazard could be given the nod as a false nine, while Antonio Rudiger is likely to line up alongside David Alaba in the middle of the defence.The visitors are without Dominik Greif who remains on the sidelines with a hip problem, while Iddrisu Baba, Amath Ndiaye and Angel Rodriguez are also expected to miss out through injury.Fight for life in the stands overshadows Barca’s storm in CadizAntonio Sanchez and Dani Rodriguez are also set to retain their spots in the side despite head coach Aguirre having a number of options for change in midfield.The visitors are again expected to line up in a 3-5-2 formation for this match, with Vedat Muriqi being joined in the final third of the field by Lee Kang-in.LA LIGA – ROUND 5FridayGirona – Valladolid 2-1 (1-1)/Reinier 21, Romeu 88 – Monchu 38/SaturdayRayo Vallecano – Valencia 2-1 (1-0)/Palazon 5, Nico 52 og – Diakhaby 90+3/Espanyol – Sevilla 2-3 (1-3)/Joselu 45+4 pen, Braithwaite 62 – Lamela 1, Carmona 26, 45/Cadiz – Barcelona 0-4 (0-0)/De Jong 55, Lewandowski 65, Fati 86, Dembele 90+2/Atl.Madrid – Celta 4-1 (1-0)/Correa 9, de Paul 50, Carrasco 66, Nunez 82 og – Veiga 71/Sunday15:00: (1.31) Real Madrid (6.00) Mallorca (10.0)17:15: (4.20) Elche (3.45) Ath.Bilbao (2.04)19:30: (3.70) Getafe (3.10) Sociedad (2.35)22:00: (3.00) Betis (3.30) Villareal (2.60)Monday22:00: (2.81) Almeria (3.05) Osasuna (2.95)***odds are subject to change***
