Getty Villarreal's French midfielder Etienne Capoue (R) vies with Real Madrid's Brazilian midfielder Casemiro(L) during the Spanish league football match Real Madrid CF against Villarreal CF at the Alfredo di Stefano stadium in Valdebebas, on the outskirts of Madrid, on May 22, 2021. (Photo by JAVIER SORIANO / AFP) (Photo by JAVIER SORIANO/AFP via Getty Images)
Real Madrid will visit Alaves in the opening game of La Liga action August 14 at Estadio de Mendizorroza in Vitoria, Spain.
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In the US, the match (4 p.m. ET start time) won’t be on TV anywhere, but you can watch Alaves vs Real Madrid live on ESPN+ right here:
You can watch every La Liga match this season on ESPN+, which also includes other international soccer (Bundesliga, FA Cup, Copa del Rey, Carabao Cup, etc), dozens of other live sports, every 30-for-30 documentary and additional original content (both video and written) all for $6.99 per month.
Or, if you also want Disney+ and Hulu, you can get all three for $13.99 per month, which works out to over 30 percent savings:
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Once signed up for ESPN+, you can watch Alaves vs Real Madrid live on the ESPN app on your Roku, Roku TV, Amazon Fire TV or Firestick, Apple TV, Chromecast, PlayStation 4 or 5, Xbox One or Series X/S, any device with Android TV (such as a Sony TV or Nvidia Shield), Samsung Smart TV, Oculus Go, iPhone, Android phone, iPad or Android tablet. Or you can watch on your computer via ESPN.com.
Alaves vs Real Madrid Preview
These two teams met twice last year, with Real Madrid winning both matches. Real Madrid is coming off a 0-0 draw against Milan on August 8. Before that, Carlo Ancelotti’s group lost 2-1 to Rangers F.C. on July 25. This will be the first match of La Liga action for both squads.
Los Blancos will be depleted to kick of their La Liga campaign, however, as they will be without Alvaro Odriozola, Ferland Mendy and Toni Kroos — and that’s just to start. Karim Benzema, who is recovering from COVID-19, will also likely miss, and Eden Hazard will either sit or see limited minutes, as he’s just been cleared to play after injury. Dani Ceballos will also be out for this match, the club announced.
“Following tests carried out on our player by the Real Madrid medical services, he has been diagnosed with a complete tear in his ankle ligaments. His recovery will continue to be assessed,” the team announced in a statement this week, via SB Nation.
Real Madrid will likely get a boost from one of its newest players in Australian David Alaba, who joined the club last month.
“I’m not here to be compared to any player. I’m here to be David Alaba and to continue to be David Alaba. I want to contribute my abilities and I’m going to try, on a playing level, to contribute my strengths; and on a personal level, try to be myself,” Alaba said in a press conference after joining the team, via Real Madrid’s official website, adding:
“I’m a very versatile player, it’s no secret that I can play in different positions. The decision is up to the coach and I have confidence in him. It’s up to the coach. Playing with three centre backs is a system that depends on where he wants to have each player.”
We’ll see how Ancelotti utilizes him, but it will likely be as a left or center-back, which are the top two positions he has played in the past.
Here’s a look at the predicted starting lineups for both teams:
Alaves possible starting lineup: Fernando Pacheco; Ruben Duarte, Florian Lejeune, Victor Laguardia, Martin Aguirregabiria; Luis Rioja, Pere Pons, Tomas Pina, Ivan Martin; Lucas Perez, Joselu
Real Madrid possible starting lineup: Thibaut Coutois, Marcelo, David Alaba, Eder Militao, Lucas Vazquez, Casemiro, Federico Valverde, Luka Modric, Rodrygo, Vinicius Junior, Luka Jovic
Head to Head: Previous Matches: 34 Alaves Wins: 5 (25 goals) Real Madrid Wins: 27 (87 goals) Draws: 2