Granada’s time in La Liga seems to be coming to an end, meaning their recent improvement (W2, D1, L1) will likely prove too little, too late and they could yet even suffer the embarrassment of finishing bottom. An immediate return to the second tier beckons following last weekend’s 3-0 hammering at the hands of Sevilla, their heaviest defeat since Villarreal beat them 5-1 in early March.
They’re yet to win on the road in the league all season, but they’ve also struggled at home (W4, D6, L7) as they welcome recently confirmed La Liga champions Real Madrid for their penultimate game of the season at Estadio Nuevo Los Cármenes. Granada must hope that the champions take their foot off the pedal as they’ve lost the last 15 H2Hs with an aggregate goal difference of -40 and haven’t won a home H2H since 2013 (L7).
Real Madrid have graciously decided they won’t receive the La Liga trophy here with Granada likely to be relegated on the day, plus they’re still chasing a double after Wednesday’s dramatic 2-1 Champions League semi-final second leg win over Bayern Munich. With the league in the bag, manager Carlo Ancelotti has the option of rotating his squad here to keep everyone fresh.
However, when questioned about giving younger squad members minutes, he’s made it clear that his priority is winning so expect a strong push for a fourth straight league away victory and a third consecutive clean sheet on the road. It seems they’ve got every chance as they’ve scored exactly four goals in four of their last six visits here – all of them victorious.
Players to watch: Lucas Boyé has scored in two of Granada’s last four games with three of his five La Liga strikes this term arriving after the 80th minute. But a potential threat earlier in the game is Real Madrid’s Brahim Díaz, as three of his last four competitive goals opened the scoring.
Hot stat: Granada have conceded an average of exactly one first-half goal per La Liga game this term, a league-high prior to the matchday.
