Matchday 14 in La Liga will pose interesting challenges for those leading the pack, as Real Madrid and Barcelona will face tough teams with different needs that could end up giving them a bit of a headache.
The first one of the two Spanish giants to get on the pitch will be Barcelona, who will make a trip to face last-placed Leganés. Javier Aguirre's men will be played their first game under a new coach this Saturday, but the Mexican boss' record against Los Culés hints that things will be quite complicated for the Madrid-based club, meaning that Barcelona will be to blame if they drop any points.
Hours later, Atlético will travel to the Southern end of Spain to face Granada, a team that seemed to be heading to a wonderful season, but has hit a major slump in their last few games. Both teams share similar winless streaks prior to this clash, which makes us think that both teams will be desperate to take the points home.
Real Madrid will put an end to Saturday's activity when they lock horns against Real Sociedad. The Txuri-urdin side shared the top of the table with Los Blancos prior to Matchday 13, and Zidane's in-form side will try to keep a dangerous opponent out of the title race with a convincing win in front of their supporters.
Without further ado, here's what you need to keep an eye on for Matchday 14 in La Liga.
Team news - Who's in, who's out?
Barcelona will visit Leganés without Jordi Alba and Nelson Semedo, who have been ruled out due to injury. Added to that, Sergi Roberto will miss this match after being suspended.
Real Madrid gets to their game against Real Sociedad without Marco Asensio, James Rodríguez and Lucas Vázquez. Nacho could still make it for Zidane's men, but he will be assessed before the game.
Atlético Madrid may have to deal with up to six absences, starting with Sime Vrsaljko, Stefan Savic and Diego Costa, who were ruled out due to injury. Furthermore, Thomas Partey and Saúl Ñiguez will serve one-match bans after picking up five yellow cards, and last, but not least, José María Giménez is a doubt due to fitness issues.
Coach's quotes ahead of Matchday 14
Real Madrid boss Zinedine Zidane stepped up to share his views on what Gareth Bale did while on international break, where he sparked controversy with a series of statements that seemed to leave Real Madrid in last place of his priority list.
"I think there's too much noise around his gesture, you need to focus on what happens on the pitch, me as a coach and him as a player. He went with his national team and was able to play, and now we will have him around. I just look at what he did on the pitch and I don't care what he did away from it. I am not interested in any of it,"the coach stated.
Key historical stats ahead of La Liga's Matchday 14
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Barcelona has won 5 out of their last six games against Leganés.
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Leganés has only won one of their last 15 La Liga games.
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Real Madrid has kept a clean sheet in their last five games (all comps).
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Real Sociedad has scored at least two goals in each of their last three games against Real Madrid.
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Atlético has drawn their last three away games.
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After a wonderful start that saw them top La Liga, Granada has lost three games in a row.
La Liga - Matchday 14 games
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