Matchday 16 of La Liga between Girona and Real Madrid will take place on December 7 at the Montilivi Stadium. Girona vs. Real Madrid: prediction and betting odds, statistics.
Referee: Jesus Gil Manzano (Spain)
Matches – 7 (La Liga, 2024/25);
Yellow cards shown (including second yellows) – 49;
Average yellow cards per match – 7;
Red cards shown – 3;
Average fouls per match – 24;
Penalties – 43%.
Predicted lineups for Girona vs. Real Madrid
Girona (4-5-1): Paulo Gazzaniga – Miguel Gutierrez, Ladislav Krejci, David Lopez, Arnau Martinez – Oriol Romeu, Donny van de Beek, Ivan Martin, Bryan Gil, Arnaut Danjuma – Bojan Miovski.
Real Madrid (4-4-2): Thibaut Courtois – Lucas Vazquez, Raul Asensio, Fran Garcia, Antonio Rudiger – Federico Valverde, Dani Ceballos, Jude Bellingham, Aurelien Tchouameni – Rodrygo Goes, Kylian Mbappe.
Each team's starting lineup from their last match in this tournament is listed.
Girona
The Catalans are unbeaten in La Liga for four matches. Such a streak hasn't been seen since May this year. The team won three matches and then drew away against Villarreal (2-2). Notably, they avoided defeat against Valencia in added time. Thanks to these results, Michel Sanchez's side has moved up to eighth place.
Midfielders Viktor Tsygankov and Yangel Herrera will miss the game due to injuries.
- The number "1" appeared in the final score in 6 of Girona's last 8 La Liga games.
- In their last 36 home matches in La Liga, the Catalans have trailed at halftime only 4 times (16 wins and 16 draws).
- At least three goals have been scored in 6 of the club's last 8 home league games.
Real Madrid
Madrid missed the chance to close the gap on Barcelona to a minimum. After losing to Athletic (1-2) in the last round, the capital club is now four points behind the leader but has a game in hand. Before facing the Basques, Real was on a three-game winning streak in the league, all with clean sheets. Carlo Ancelotti's side averages two goals per match, the second-best in the league (only Barcelona scores more with 3 goals).
Defenders David Alaba, Dani Carvajal, and Eder Militao, forwards Rodrygo Goes and Vinicius Junior, and midfielder Eduardo Camavinga will not play due to injuries.
- In 6 of the club's last 8 La Liga games, exactly two or three goals were scored.
- Real scored at least two goals in 9 of their last 12 La Liga matches.
- Madrid did not concede in the first 45 minutes in their last five away league games.
Girona vs. Real Madrid: Match Prediction
Last season, the Catalans played very entertaining football, competing with Real for the championship title and finishing a strong third. However, even last season, Girona lost both head-to-head encounters with significant margins – 0-3 and 0-4. In the current championship, the Catalans have a much weaker squad, so I am confident Michel Sanchez's side will lose again to the capital club.
Overall, Girona is a threat at Montilivi. However, even at home, they lost to Real Sociedad (0-1) and Barcelona (1-4) this season. Facing strong opponents has been difficult for the Catalans this season. Real cannot afford to drop points in a second consecutive league match. Madrid could fall significantly behind Barcelona. The club is strong on the road, having been unbeaten in 21 previous away La Liga matches before facing Athletic (13 wins and 8 draws).
My prediction – Real Madrid to Win
