Real find themselves currently in third place, one point ahead of Atlético. With a win, the club will be a point behind of Valencia and 5 points behind Barcelona, the current leader in the standings. With this match being back at the Bernabéu, the pressure is on Real to fix their lackluster home performances and further their win streak in La Liga.

Several key injuries are still plaguing the Real Madrid starting XI including: Carvajal, Bale, Navas, Varane. With that in mind we look towards the potential starting XIs for both Los Blancos and Eibar:

Real Madrid

GK: Casilla

After a good showing against Tottenham in place for the injured Keylor Navas, Kiko Casilla will start again in Navas’ place as he recovers. Casilla will to have another good showing in goal as Real needs the 3 points at home.

D: Achraf, Ramos, Nacho, Marcelo

Achraf Hakimi will most likely at right back in place of Carvajal again due to his injury. Ramos should be paired with Nacho, who will fill in for Varane who isn’t fully ready. Nacho has been rock solid for Real as he has been cycled through the defensive positions. Marcelo is back again at left back, a great thing for the squad to have him back in his usual spot. The defense stays as it did last week against Getafe.

MF: Modric, Casemiro, Kroos

Modric and Casemiro might return to the starting XI after not starting in last weekend’s La Liga match. This is the best possible option Real has for their midfield. Having Modric and Kroos back together is a welcoming sight and increases Real’s chances of winning immensely.

F: Isco, Benzema, Ronaldo

Real could start with Benzema and Ronaldo up top with Isco in the attacking midfield position behind them. With Bale still out, it’s important for Ronaldo and Benzema to create chemistry between each other and create goals from it. Isco is being given some freedom to use his great footwork with the amount of space he has in the attacking role. This looks to be a good starting squad for the club considering all the injuries that have been accumulating in the early parts of this season. And hopefully being at home, Real can take some of the crowd’s momentum and come out with the win.

SD Eibar

GK: Dmitrovic

D: Capa, Arbilla, Olveira, Lomban

MF: Junca, Jordan, Garcia

F: Escalante, Inui, Enrich

Eibar will be without Yoel Rodriguez, Pedro Leon, Ivan Alejo, Ivan Ramos, and Fran Rico.

Possible substitutions you’ll see for Real sometime in the second half of play could be, Marco Asensio, Lucas Vasquez, Dani Ceballos.

All in all, Real is the clear favorite in this match. Even with not winning much at home and being better on the road, they still have the advantage of the home crowd. Real is clearly the better side on paper, as Eibar is currently in 16th with only 7 points. That being said, as I always say, Real would do well to not take them lightly and must keep the pressure on all match.

Scoring Prediction

3-0 Real Madrid-SD Eibar

Ronaldo 2x, Benzema

Ronaldo is always a reliable pick to score for this squad. It’s possible he puts 2 on a sub-par squad and lifts the team to three points in the process. Benzema may also break through and it’s always fun to pick him with the constant criticism he gets. Bottom line—regardless of who scores, Real needs the 3 points if they want to try and jump Valencia in the stands in the next couple of weeks. And of course, get closer to Barcelona at the top of the league, who are unfortunately red-hot at the moment. Big match for Real with hopefully a big win to top it all off.

HOW TO WATCH, STREAM LA LIGA

Date: 10/22/2017

Time: 20:45 CET, 02:45pm EST, 11:45 am Pacific.

Venue: Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid, Spain.

Available TV: BeIN Sports (USA), Sky Sports Football (UK), Movistar Partidazo (Spain).

Available Streaming: BeIN Sports (USA), Fubo.TV (EVERY Real Madrid game with a high-quality and legal stream, click here to sign up and benefit from a summer discount for new members and Managing Madrid readers).