PREVIEW | Espanyol vs Real Madrid: team news, lineups, predictions (La Liga 22/08)

Espanyol and Real Madrid face off this Saturday at the RCDE Stadium in La Liga. Espanyol mark their 90th participation in the competition, whilst Real Madrid go into their 96th.

Espanyol have 3 points to their name this season and occupy 1st position in the table. In their last game, Manolo González‘s team won 3-0 against Levante (La Liga 2026/27).

Real Madrid have picked up 0 points and currently lie in 10th position. In their last match, José Mourinho‘s team prevailed 0-3 against Schalke 04 (Pre-season 2026/27).

The last meeting between the two teams ended with Real Madrid winning 2-0.

Unavailable

Espanyol

Real Madrid

• Raúl Asencio – Muscle Injury
• Thiago Pitarch – Cruciate Ligament Injury

Last starting XIs

Espanyol ( vs Levante 2026-08-16): Marko Dmitrović, Omar El Hilali, Unai Núñez, Clemens Riedel, Roger Hinojo, Urko González, Edu Expósito, Álex Calatrava, Javier Hernández, Tyrhys Dolan, Roberto Fernández

Real Madrid ( vs Athletic Bilbao 2026-05-23): Thibaut Courtois, Dani Carvajal, Raúl Asencio, David Alaba, Álvaro Carreras, Franco Mastantuono, Jude Bellingham, Fede Valverde, Thiago Pitarch, Kylian Mbappé, Gonzalo García

Did you know…by playmaker stats

MANAGERS

• José Mourinho has faced Espanyol on six occasions, recording four wins and two draws
• Manolo González has faced Real Madrid on four occasions, recording one win and three defeats

HEAD TO HEAD

• Espanyol and Real Madrid have already faced each other 203 times, with Real Madrid holding the advantage: 121 wins, against 46 for Espanyol.
• At the RCDE Stadium, Espanyol have the edge in meetings with Real Madrid: 41 wins in 101 matches. Real Madrid have 40 victories.
• In the Spanish league, the two teams have played 180 matches, with 37 wins for Espanyol, 33 draws and 110 victories for Real Madrid.