With the La Liga title race a thrilling three-horse chase entering 2025, Real Madrid look to make their move as they visit Valencia in the Spanish top flight on Friday.
Los Blancos sit second in the table, just a point behind cross-town rivals Atleti. Barcelona sit third two points further back having played an extra game.
It took Carlo Ancelotti a while to figure out the right mix up front, but he seems to have finally pushed the right buttons and has Europe’s most successful club on a roll.
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Valencia, on the other hand, is 19th and threatened with relegation. The wonderful Spanish aspect has flirted with relegation several times over beyond the decade and can be placed in a second-half war opposite to what would be a shocking fall.
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Real Madrid turns out to have discovered a small step forward, depending on its offensive stars to hit its opponents, knowing that its defense is a weakness. He scored 3 or more goals in his last five games, won 4 and tied.
Getting Kylian Mbappé back has been key for Los Blancos and, unlike a Valencia side in the relegation zone, there are no signs of the run in the top flight ending here.
Carlo Ancelotti has unleashed his Real Madrid side, going all-in on outscoring the opponent. With so many injuries to his back line, Ancelotti decided to abandon Madrid’s suffer-ball mentality and just lean into their world-class attacking talent.
They’re up against a Valencia side that hasn’t kept a clean sheet in six straight matches and have just two since the start of October. A big reason is the goalkeeping position, with Giorgi Mamardashvili having regressed before suffering an injury, and his replacement Stole Dimitrievski not performing much better.
More than 2. 5 objectives are the game’s plus, but at -140 dimensions, there’s a lot more to be gained here, and the last two games between those two groups have exceeded this total, so there’s precedent as well.
Rodrygo had a difficult season, even though Vinicius Jr. and Kylian Mbappé also struggled for form and fitness at various times. However, despite everything, Ancelotti’s new offensive mentality turns around, having scored and assisted in each of the last two games of the championship.
He’s also been strong against Valencia of late, with two goals and two assists in the last two league meetings between the clubs. The Brazilian is still third in the pecking order behind Mbappe and Vinicius, but given those two superstars have value-less odds, this is the play.
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Kyle Bonn, is a Syracuse University broadcast journalism graduate with over a decade of experience covering soccer globally. Kyle specializes in soccer tactics and betting, with a degree in data analytics. Kyle also does TV broadcasts for Wake Forest soccer, and has had previous stops with NBC Soccer and IMG College. When not covering the game, he has long enjoyed loyalty to the New York Giants, Yankees, and Fulham. Kyle enjoys playing racquetball and video games when not watching or covering sports.