Espanyol vs Real Madrid, 2016 La Liga: Projected Lineups and Team News

Real Madrid will have to take care of business without Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale. Both men stayed in Madrid trying to be ready for Real's next Liga match against Villarreal next Wednesday.

“Cristiano will not be travelling with us as he has a sore throat. He will be staying in Madrid. He is simply not ready, we won't be taking risks with anyone and least of all with him. Gareth took a big knock to the hip so we won't be risking him. The players all want to play, but we're playing every three days, we have a lot of games, and we can't risk such an important player. This is a group, so they are all key components, and when someone has an issue it is better for someone else to play. We always think with a group mentality," said Zidane during the pre-match press conference.

The French coach did not want to announce his starting lineup.

Real Madrid projected XI: Casilla, Carvajal, Varane, Ramos, Marcelo, Casemiro, Modric, Kroos, Vazquez, Asensio.

Espanyol projected XI: Lopez, Lopez, Reyes, Duarte, Sanchez, Perez, Lopez, Roca, Piatti, Baptistao, Moreno.