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Real Madrid visit Espanyol hoping to keep their faint hopes in the LaLiga title race alive for one more week.
Los Blancos trail leaders Barcelona by 11 points with five games remaining, and that gap could be 14 by the time they kick off, with Hansi Flick’s men visiting Osasuna on Saturday.
If both Barca and Madrid prevail this weekend, then Hansi Flick’s side could clinch the title with a draw in El Clasico next weekend.
Should Madrid fail to win in Catalonia on Sunday, then the title race will not even get that far.
Madrid are not likely to stick with coach Alvaro Arbeloa next season and, though they will want to extend Barca’s wait as long as possible, they are arguably unlikely to have as much motivation as Espanyol.
Indeed, while Espanyol are 13th, they are still only five points above the bottom three and still have work to do to ensure their survival in the top flight.
Espanyol are winless in their last eight matches, but midfielder Edu Exposito gave coach Manolo Gonzalez his backing when speaking to the press on Thursday.
“We’re behind him and we’re going to give it our all in these five matches,” Exposito said.
“We know we have to win because this second half of the season has been awful for us. We’ve had some good games, but also some bad luck. I understand that the fans have high expectations. It’s normal. We’re calm and confident.”
Team news for Espanyol v Real Madrid
Madrid will be minus Kylian Mbappe because of a hamstring issue, while Rodrygo, Eder Militao and Arda Guler are all out for the rest of the season.
Thibaut Courtois is once again expected to miss out with a thigh injury, while Aurelien Tchouameni is a doubt because of a calf problem.
Espanyol will be without the suspended Pol Lozano and long-term absentee Javi Puado due to a knee injury.
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