Marcelo
Marcelo scored for Real Madrid in the club's 2-1 defeat against Celta Vigo Getty

Real Madrid will be looking to recover after back-to-back defeats when they host Malaga at the Santiago Bernabeu on 21 January.

Where to watch

Kick-off is set for 3.15pm BST. The game is not scheduled for live broadcast in the UK.

Overview

Real Madrid suffered their second straight defeat in midweek as goals from Iago Aspas and Jonny gave Celta Vigo a 2-1 win in the Copa del Rey quarter-final first leg at the Santiago Bernabeu. The capital club have a one-point lead over second-placed Sevilla on the La Liga table, but have a game in hand.

Right-back Dani Carvajal sustained a hamstring injury in the Celta match and will be sidelined for a month.

Malaga fell to their fourth successive defeat in all competitions as Real Sociedad triumphed 2-0 at La Rosaleda on 16 January. The Andalusian club have lost five of their last seven league meetings with Real Madrid.

Sandro is sidelined with a hamstring injury, while Roberto Rosales and Recio (both foot) are doubts.

What managers say

Zinedine Zidane: "We played a strange game [against Celta Vigo] and this was in a bad moment. We will not hide from this. Two games in a row, something is happening. We must analyse our situation, look at it now and see what we can do to rapidly change these results. Tonight we played a very good rival who made it difficult for us; we did not know how to manage properly the game and we had no intensity from the start. It is good for us to have another game on Saturday. Football is like that, it's a bad moment, but we will come out of it all together." [via Football Espana]

Marcelo Romero: "They arrive after the defeat against Celta in the Copa del Rey, so they will be hurt. We know what scenario we are going to encounter and that will be an added difficulty. We have worked on their weaknesses, but also on being able to demonstrate the quality that we have. I believe in our chances to do something if we can take advantage of the opportunities we have." [via Marca]

Form guide

  • Real Madrid (all competitions): LLDWW
  • Last result: Real Madrid 1-2 Celta Vigo (Copa del Rey)
  • Malaga (all competitions): LLLLD
  • Last result: Malaga 0-2 Real Sociedad

Betting odds (Betfair)

  • Real Madrid win: 3/20
  • Draw: 9/1
  • Malaga win: 18/1

Team news

Real Madrid possible XI: Navas; Danilo, Varane, Ramos, Marcelo; Kroos, Casemiro, Modric; Vasquez, Benzema, Ronaldo

Malaga possible XI: Kameni; Rosales, Munoz, Villanueva, Carlos; Camacho, Fornals; Santos, Duda, Castro; Penaranda

Real Madrid