Cup revenge: Real Madrid’s quick reunion with Elche
Fast reunion between Real Madrid and FC Elche. Only on Thursday both teams dueled in the Spanish Cup, already on Sunday they meet again. On the 22nd matchday of La Liga, Real Madrid will now host Elche, whereas on Thursday they played in Elche.
In the cup, the royals had the better end for themselves, but the Madrilenians had to sweat mightily and only made it to the quarter-finals after extra time. Will it be a similarly contested affair in the league? The best betting companies do not expect it to be, as the home side are considered heavy favourites in advance, as a look at the Real Madrid vs. Elche odds makes clear.
Despite Real having to go into overtime on Thursday, the betting shops are leaving no doubt as to who will walk off victorious in La Liga on Sunday afternoon (kick-off: 16:15). Given the odds on Real Madrid vs. Elche, it’s not worth placing a three-way bet on the royals. But will it really be such a clear-cut affair?
Real Madrid – Statistics & current form
Playing with the B eleven in the cup in Elche almost took its revenge. Not only did Real Madrid have to work overtime on Thursday evening, they also almost disgraced themselves in the relegation candidate’s cup. The score was 0-0 after 90 minutes, so extra time was necessary – and in this extra time there was a double moment of shock after 102 minutes. First Marcelo saw red, then outsiders Elche took a 1:0 lead. With their backs against the wall, Real Madrid finally woke up from their lethargy and turned the game around with goals from Isco and Hazard.
By the skin of their teeth, the favourites thus progressed 2-1 after extra time against Elche, unnecessary strains in an English week that had started triumphantly. Finally, Real knocked out arch-rivals Barcelona in the Supercup semi-final (3:2 n.V.) and then triumphed in the Supercopa de España final against Athletic Bilbao (2:0).
After Supercopa triumph: Real slip past embarrassment in Cup
Winning their first cup this season hasn’t exactly inspired the Madrilenians to be brash in the cup, though. Perhaps that will change in the league on Sunday in the “second leg” against Elche – after all, the top eleven will now be on the pitch again.
Moreover, Ancelotti’s men are now playing at the Bernabeu again, where they are still undefeated. They have won seven and drawn three of their ten games this season, so it’s no wonder that betting on a home win for Real Madrid vs Elche brings extremely low odds.
However, the league leader can’t really afford to be careless like in the cup, as the lead over chaser Sevilla is currently only four points. Therefore, it makes sense for us to predict Real Madrid vs. Elche on the home side – odds-wise, it would be more interesting for Real to win by zero, for example.
Predicted Real Madrid line-up:
Courtois – Carvajal, Militao, Alaba, Mendy – Casemiro, Kroos, Modric – Rodrygo, Benzema, Vinicius Jr.
Last matches played by Real Madrid:
Copa del Rey
01/20 2022 – Elche 1 – 2 Real Madrid
Super Cup
01/16 2022 – Athletic Bilbao 0 – 2 Real Madrid
01/12 2022 – Barcelona 2 – 3 Real Madrid
LaLiga
01/08 2022 – Real Madrid 4 – 1 Valencia
Copa del Rey
01/05 2022 – Alcoyano 1 – 3 Real Madrid
Elche – Statistics & current form
A home win for Real without conceding a goal is not that unlikely, because: Elche have conceded four of their nine defeats to nil, and they also have two nil defeats to their name.
Like all relegation candidates, the Franjiverdes do not have an easy time away from home. They have already lost seven of their eleven matches away from home, while they have already celebrated two victories on their opponents’ pitch this season. Eleven goals in eleven away games is not a great return either, although ten La Liga teams have scored fewer goals than that.
Elche with rising form and small series
What basically encourages Elche ahead of the tough trip to the Bernabeu is not only their recent performance in the cup – after all, the score was a draw after 90 minutes – but also their form in La Liga. They have been unbeaten for three games, won twice and conceded only one goal. The away win at Espanyol (2:1) and especially the home win against Villarreal (1:0) are remarkable results for the fifteenth in the table, which gives them a five-point buffer on the relegation places.
So can Elche expect to win a point at the Bernabeu after all? If you believe so, you will be rewarded with remarkable odds on Real Madrid vs. Elche. The draw has odds of 8 at the top end.
Predicted line-up of Elche:
Badia – Barragan, Verdu, Gonzalez, Mojica – Gumbau, Mascarell, Milla, Morente – Perez, Boye
Last matches played by Elche:
Copa del Rey
01/20 2022 – Elche 1 – 2 Real Madrid
LaLiga
01/16 2022 – Elche 1 – 0 FC Villarreal
01/10 2022 – Espanyol 1 – 2 Elche
Copa del Rey
01/06 2022 – Almeria 1 – 2 Elche
LaLiga
01/02 2022 – Elche 0 – 0 Granada
Real Madrid – Elche Direct comparison / H2H balance
In the cup, Elche had the favourites from Madrid on the verge of knocking them out. In the league, however, there was only one point in the last eleven duels. The 1-1 draw in Elche in December 2020 was the big outlier, Real Madrid won each of the other ten games – with a goal difference of 32:9.
Real Madrid – Elche Tip
As mentioned, bettors don’t believe Elche will end their streak or take anything worthwhile at all. Despite three league games without defeat, despite a win against Villarreal, despite a valiant performance in the cup against Real Madrid themselves (including a draw after 90 minutes), the Green-Whites are not trusted with anything.
Anything other than a win for the Ancelotti team would be a big surprise. However, we have seen several times recently that Elche are much improved under coach Francisco. That’s why we believe Real will win, but not by a landslide. For Real Madrid against Elche, this forecast offers interesting odds: Real Madrid wins by less than 3.5 goals.
