Real Madrid vs Levante Match Preview
Newly promoted Levante visits the Santiago Bernabeu this Saturday to lock horns with a rival of a total different category. Real Madrid's captain Iker Casillas is ruled out from the game, and his absence can be Blancos' Achilles heel.
"Levante can pose a dangerous threat" said Mourinho prior to this game. He wants his players to leave behind the sound 8-0 victory over Levante for the Copa del Rey and focus on this Liga clash, as they can reduce the gap from the top to only two points as they wait for Barcelona to take on Athletic.
Let's not forget Levante defeated Real Madrid in the second-leg match 2-0, and they've already shown to be in outstanding form last week by defeating Villarreal 1-0. In fact, Luis Garcia's Granotes have kept a perfect score in the last three Liga matches, and now team's coach looks forward to write yet another chapter in Levante's Liga history.
Jose Mourinho will be preserving Pepe, Mesut Ozil, Alvaro Arbeloa and Emmanuel Adebayor will be preserved for Madrid's visit to France next week for the Champions League. Karim Benzema, Kaka and Sergio Ramos return to the starting squad to provide more versatility in the attack.
UD Levante's coach will have to do without Miguel Pallardó, Sergio Gonzalez and Gorka Larrea, the first banned from performing and the rest struggling with injuries. Luis Garcia will most likely be playing with a five-men defensive back line to neutralize the Galactic massive firepower and rely on the counter attack to secure the game, will this be enough?