La Liga (Spanish League) Prediction Thread 2025/26

[Richbased]

I understand Benfica is not a small team and I am not even going to take them to be any of those teams they can mess with, but this is real madrid we are talking, they are not a team Benfica should normally have this walkover them unless they lack form which is the real case scenario. You can't get a 4 goals trash on Madrid so easily, at least they should have work harder and all you have is Mbappe's two goals which could have been better with more goals to fill up the goal gaps existing in between the two teams. This Real Madrid case is what many fans and analysts and commentators will be talking about till the next couple of weeks because of their bad decisions.

Without Mourinho, I don't think Benfica would be able to beat Real Madrid, but here we are talking about Mourinho, 'the special one'. He understands the ins and outs of Real Madrid and is aware of the situation they are currently facing-- he also understands that the Real Madrid players are not gelling well at the moment and that only Mbappe can be relied upon, so he is using this to his advantage to devise the best strategy for Benfica to beat Real Madrid. I can say that Mourinho is very clever in this regard and is able to take advantage of Real Madrid's weaknesses.

Mourinho is a specialist in winning big teams and i respect him for that because he got a lot of experiences within the years he has managed different clubs. What marveled me was when he signaled the goalkeeper to move to the opponent's side which resulted to a goal in the die minutes. Mbappe tried his best for Real Madrid all through the league phase but it's unfortunate they have to pass through a playoff round before they can reach the round of 16. If other team mates applied efforts as Mbappe did, they would have gotten direct qualification because when Mbappe got the opener, it was for his team mates to help by scoring a second goal but instead they relaxed and Benfica scored and equalized the score and still won the first half so when they returned for the second half Real Madrid was looking for an equalizer while Benfica extended the lead which killed the morale of Real Madrid players but Mbappe didn't give up and succeeded to score a second goal but only for them to reach the injury time where they were expecting to equalize the score, Ascensio got a red card which demoralized the team completely before Rodrygo also got a red card and it led to the 4th goal that Benfica scored.

[Out of mind]

It has become very challenging for Real Madrid to qualify for the next round of the Champions League this season. However, since there is still a chance in the round of 16, if Real Madrid can focus on the game and play with good leadership and strategy, then Madrid will have a chance to survive. And besides, we know that they have already lost the match against Benfica and it is difficult to say how well they will perform in the next matches. But Real Madrid is in a very challenging situation this season, if they cannot change their game, they will definitely be eliminated from the Champions League. However, I think that Real Madrid is currently in such a desperate situation due to the lack of experienced players, they should bring in some experienced players. If Real Madrid can beat the opposition in the knockout stage, I hope they will regain some confidence, although it is very difficult.

[dezoel]

When will Real Madrid realize that what they need is not a striker, rather defense and midfield. They have a better striker, who I think is better than Haaland, so why are they interested in Haaland.

In Real Madrid I will choose Mbappe as the key striker over Haaland. Mbappe can create goal scoring chances, he can also score solo goal, without the help of anyone. While Haaland, need players around him to create those chance for him.

Because Mbappe can play as left forward, and having a striker would be good for them while Vini or Rodrygo or anyone else as wingers are bad. So if they could somehow get some great players there, like for example get Haaland to play at striker, and get rid of Vini instead, then they could put Mbappe there.

Sure Mbappe would score less from left wing/forward, but they would be overall better and that is what they are looking for in the team right now. So a striker could work, but I also agree that a better defense would be priority.

[slapper]

Barcelona have only one point more than Real Madrid in La Liga but with advantage of fixture in coming weeks as well as instability of Real Madrid performances by unresolved problems, Barcelona will have kind of opportunity to expand the 1-point difference to something bigger in the near future.

What I have observed about trophies in different leagues that I have withness is that greatness comes with humbling, you can't win league when you are rude, feel the world revolved around you and feel entitled to a league, Real Madrid is suffering from this syndrome but worse of it is that I have not experienced one like this before after what happened between the team and Benfica, there is no way they are going to beat the current form of Barcelona.

Don't look at that one point you are seeing, Real Madrid can play their next match and maybe lose but Barcelona can do 5/5 and win the matches all through, not sure how Rwla Madrid are going to win 5/5 matches without not making the headline. Like, we have made standard as if Madrid are the owners of Laliga and it's not. Those periods when Barcelona was dealing with bankruptcy, they had their time but still managed to do better unlike Real Madrid that looks better but are the worst form now.

There's this moment that's playing through my head over and over from the Supercopa final. Not the goals or the red card or anything like that. It's Vinicius finally scoring after having been silent since October.

Then they lost anyway. 3-2.

They sacked Xabi Alonso because he was fighting with the players. Then brought in Arbeloa who lost to a second division team in the Cup immediately. Bernabeu actually booed their own stars after that. Their own fans! When the last time that happened at Madrid and things turned out fine?

What is fascinating me about Barcelona at this moment is how Unspectacular they are in a way? Like there's no one moment of the superhero. It's just this machine of young players with no feeling of entitlement and it's just this machine that keeps going and going. Flick's won every final he's ever coached (all eight of them).

The comparison of bankruptcy hits different because Barcelona had to rebuild their entire identity while broke. Madrid's trying to keep theirs as everything's falling apart.

I think that's what you're seeing - one team is remembering what it's like to have nothing. The other's forgotten what it takes to have everything.

[el kaka22]

Real Madrid is still la serious contender to win the league, and they are doing all in their power to make that work, sure there are some problems in the club, losing to Benfica is a great example of what's going on with the team, but at the end of the day they can't be just bad straight up, they are just underplaying right now and not at level where they should be.

Manager change didn't help so far, and while Arbeloa is a fine manager for some smaller team, they need a bigger name for such a big club as well. Real Madrid needs someone who is a bit egotistical and seeing themselves above everyone else, someone like Mourinho basically but someone more modern and new, Mourinho is gone and been bad for a while, they need 2026 version of him.

[puloweh555]

Real Madrid is still la serious contender to win the league, and they are doing all in their power to make that work, sure there are some problems in the club, losing to Benfica is a great example of what's going on with the team, but at the end of the day they can't be just bad straight up, they are just underplaying right now and not at level where they should be.

Manager change didn't help so far, and while Arbeloa is a fine manager for some smaller team, they need a bigger name for such a big club as well. Real Madrid needs someone who is a bit egotistical and seeing themselves above everyone else, someone like Mourinho basically but someone more modern and new, Mourinho is gone and been bad for a while, they need 2026 version of him.

The defeat to Benfica provided a point of evaluation for Arbeloa particularly in defense and when making substitutions. Albeloa still seemed hesitant to replace star players when they weren't performing at their best. I think Albeloa should learn from this mistake. Real Madrid's next match against Rayo, will be a moment for Albeloa to prove he's worthy of the interim manager role.

In the Champions League Real Madrid will also face the same opponent, Benfica. Real Madrid must be more prepared for the upcoming match especially in fielding their starting lineups. Regarding Albeloa's potential as a permanent Real Madrid coach he certainly isn't yet suited to the role. Coaching a big club like Real Madrid especially with so many star players requires a coach with extensive experience. They need a coach with the same character as Mourinho and that figure is in Klopp. I hope that one day or next season Klopp can become Real Madrid's manager.

[Jaweria parveen]

the league is truly exciting

Team	Point	GF	GS
Barcellona	52	57	22

Real Madrid, Villarreal, Atletico Madrid, Espanyol, Elche, Athletic Club, Rayo Vallecano, Mallorca, Real Oviedo are the teams that have lost by many goals in their last games and Barcelona and other teams that have played well and Victory are some that have drawn without playing much struggle. Some new games are being played in this league of La Liga such as Espanyol and Alavés and in this game, Espanyol's player Fernández has scored 1 goal for his victory in the 15th minute and this team had failed in its last game and in this game, it has a chance to be successful by playing better. The starting teams that are in a few points difference should play better so that their hard work can give them some advice.

[Stablexcoin]

True, i also remember that they started the championship well and now they have dropped a lot.
What happened, maybe they gave too much physically in the first part of the championship and got exhausted and tired
It could be, it happens to small teams

Real Madrid will be playing Benfica again in the Champions League play off, i already made my prediction that Real Madrid will win in the playoff. What happened last time will not happen for the second time, Real Madrid will make good preparation for the game, they can't afford not to qualify for the round of 16, they always have, it is so normal to see them qualify.

[Renampun]

The defeat to Benfica provided a point of evaluation for Arbeloa particularly in defense and when making substitutions. Albeloa still seemed hesitant to replace star players when they weren't performing at their best. I think Albeloa should learn from this mistake. Real Madrid's next match against Rayo, will be a moment for Albeloa to prove he's worthy of the interim manager role.
snip

This should be a very easy match for Real Madrid considering that the opponent they will face is Rayo with a bad record in their last match and this time Real Madrid will also play at home, this should be their moment to be able to bounce back from their defeat against Benfica yesterday, and also as proof that Albeloa can manage the team well and respond to pressure after the previous bad result, if they also lose this match, I think Albeloa's career will end quickly.

[BRINIRHA]

Real Madrid will be playing Benfica again in the Champions League play off, i already made my prediction that Real Madrid will win in the playoff. What happened last time will not happen for the second time, Real Madrid will make good preparation for the game, they can't afford not to qualify for the round of 16, they always have, it is so normal to see them qualify.

In the past, Real madrid has sometimes found itself in difficult situations, but they always managed to win dramatically in the end. And I hope this time will be the same. Because seeing Real Madrid eliminated quickly would be a huge disappointment.


The Espanyol vs. Alaves match has at least gone as I expected. So now I can relax, whatever the outcome. both teams have scored, which means there are already two goals and I'm sure there will be one more goal in this match. however, Espanyol seems to be struggling in this match, even though they are the home team.

[Taricoins]

True, i also remember that they started the championship well and now they have dropped a lot.
What happened, maybe they gave too much physically in the first part of the championship and got exhausted and tired
It could be, it happens to small teams

Real Madrid will be playing Benfica again in the Champions League play off, i already made my prediction that Real Madrid will win in the playoff. What happened last time will not happen for the second time, Real Madrid will make good preparation for the game, they can't afford not to qualify for the round of 16, they always have, it is so normal to see them qualify.

The Real Madrid top brass might end up sacking Arbeloa if they don't win there decisive match against Benfica, I was hearing some reports that some Real Madrid players where complaining about the confidence of Arbeloa, if Real Madid wants to bring this win home, Arbeloa has to be composed with his substitution and Real Madrid has to actually show the individual brilliance they have been hyping about.

[red4slash]

The Real Madrid top brass might end up sacking Arbeloa if they don't win there decisive match against Benfica, I was hearing some reports that some Real Madrid players where complaining about the confidence of Arbeloa, if Real Madid wants to bring this win home, Arbeloa has to be composed with his substitution and Real Madrid has to actually show the individual brilliance they have been hyping about.

If you look at what happened to Xabi before, maybe this can also happen to Arbeloa especially since he is only an interim at the moment but the problem is that firing the coach now is not easy when they still haven't really found the right coach for Madrid so this possibility will be another consideration.

I think Madrid will be more careful at the moment but to face Benfica still the victory must be obtained because if not this will slightly tarnish Madrid's image when they do not qualify for the knock out phase which is almost every competition they participate in the Champions League they can always qualify for the next phase even though the results are not in accordance with expectations when the quarter-finals or semi-finals.

This season has been a bit of a struggle but I still believe that Arbeloa is capable of making a difference in the play offs this time around despite the fact that their schedule will be even busier due to the 2 extra games in the play offs.

[Slow death]

The Espanyol vs. Alaves match has at least gone as I expected. So now I can relax, whatever the outcome. both teams have scored, which means there are already two goals and I'm sure there will be one more goal in this match. however, Espanyol seems to be struggling in this match, even though they are the home team.

It's unbelievable how much Espanyol has declined. They started the season well, it seemed like they could finish in a good position in the table, but the last few games have been a disaster for them. They lost many points and today they had another terrible result that puts them in a situation where the teams below them will overtake them, and Espanyol will be out of European competition. Honestly, I keep wondering what went wrong for them to lose points in the last few games.

[Dzwaafu11]

~snip~

Real Madrid will be playing Benfica again in the Champions League play off, i already made my prediction that Real Madrid will win in the playoff. What happened last time will not happen for the second time, Real Madrid will make good preparation for the game, they can't afford not to qualify for the round of 16, they always have, it is so normal to see them qualify.

Let see then. Because the last time result was a very shocking one, I expected them to win that match but lost to Benfica. So for this one, seriously I can’t say anything because the last one didn’t went as expect. So for this one, seriously, I can’t predict Real Madrid to win, to me I will just take anything I see in this match. Let’s see what will happen, I just hope Real Madrid do their possible best to win the match.

[Agbe]

True, i also remember that they started the championship well and now they have dropped a lot.
What happened, maybe they gave too much physically in the first part of the championship and got exhausted and tired
It could be, it happens to small teams

Real Madrid will be playing Benfica again in the Champions League play off, i already made my prediction that Real Madrid will win in the playoff. What happened last time will not happen for the second time, Real Madrid will make good preparation for the game, they can't afford not to qualify for the round of 16, they always have, it is so normal to see them qualify.

After their embarrassing win in the first leg perhaps they will be able to win Benfica in the next one. if Benfica ends up winning again then it proves that real Madrid are not capable enough to compete in the champions league this season. in the next game they are going to have more advantage because they will be on their home ground, but something tells me that they might try to play defence.

[Sexylizzy2813]

After that disappointing display by Madrid I don't know how they're going to get over what happened in the champions league and focus on the league game at hand. Madrid would be host Rayo Vallecano, with that same sad face I don't think it will be easy for them to easily forget the champions league game, they need to move on because if they don't Barcelona will be happy to secure another 3pt and extend their lead which will be hard to close the gap, we know that 1pt is not enough but at this point Madrid need to be winning their games while they wait for Barcelona to slip off the number 1 spot, can Madrid be at their best against Rayo Vallecano?

[laspol65]

True, i also remember that they started the championship well and now they have dropped a lot.
What happened, maybe they gave too much physically in the first part of the championship and got exhausted and tired
It could be, it happens to small teams

Real Madrid will be playing Benfica again in the Champions League play off, i already made my prediction that Real Madrid will win in the playoff. What happened last time will not happen for the second time, Real Madrid will make good preparation for the game, they can't afford not to qualify for the round of 16, they always have, it is so normal to see them qualify.

This season, Real Madrid has performed poorly, with huge mistakes being made by their players. In the second match, Real Madrid lost by a huge margin with the worst performance. However, Real Madrid has made as many mistakes as they did against Benfica, so they will face them again in the future, so Real Madrid should correct their past mistakes. Real Madrid is an offensive team that can create a chance to win at any time, but no fan imagined that Real Madrid would suddenly perform so badly against Benfica. So in the next match, Real Madrid will definitely correct their mistakes and prepare for the competition on the field.

[imamusma]

After that disappointing display by Madrid I don't know how they're going to get over what happened in the champions league and focus on the league game at hand. Madrid would be host Rayo Vallecano, with that same sad face I don't think it will be easy for them to easily forget the champions league game, they need to move on because if they don't Barcelona will be happy to secure another 3pt and extend their lead which will be hard to close the gap, we know that 1pt is not enough but at this point Madrid need to be winning their games while they wait for Barcelona to slip off the number 1 spot, can Madrid be at their best against Rayo Vallecano?

On paper, I think Real Madrid will secure all three points when facing Rayo Vallecano, and I even predict they will score plenty of goals as a way of venting their frustration after yesterday defeat in the Champions League. We know that Rayo Vallecano are honestly not a difficult opponent for Real Madrid, and the fact that they have managed only one win in their last five matches.

[SilverCryptoBullet]

Real Madrid is still la serious contender to win the league, and they are doing all in their power to make that work, sure there are some problems in the club, losing to Benfica is a great example of what's going on with the team, but at the end of the day they can't be just bad straight up, they are just underplaying right now and not at level where they should be.

Manager change didn't help so far, and while Arbeloa is a fine manager for some smaller team, they need a bigger name for such a big club as well. Real Madrid needs someone who is a bit egotistical and seeing themselves above everyone else, someone like Mourinho basically but someone more modern and new, Mourinho is gone and been bad for a while, they need 2026 version of him.

Real Madrid have more star players than Benfica and they're truly stronger than Benfica but in direct matches, decisions of head coaches can decide their team approaches, operations and match results. In coaching experience and quality, Jose Mourinho has more abundant experience in his longer coach career than Arbeloa, and he surely has better management skills and quality than Arbeloa.

It will be biggest advantage of Benfica against Real Madrid in two playoff matches but Benfica will need their players performing well, even almost perfect in these two matches for eliminating Real Madrid out of Champions League this season.

In the Champions League Real Madrid will also face the same opponent, Benfica. Real Madrid must be more prepared for the upcoming match especially in fielding their starting lineups. Regarding Albeloa's potential as a permanent Real Madrid coach he certainly isn't yet suited to the role. Coaching a big club like Real Madrid especially with so many star players requires a coach with extensive experience. They need a coach with the same character as Mourinho and that figure is in Klopp. I hope that one day or next season Klopp can become Real Madrid's manager.

That's very hillarious to have a pair between Real Madrid and Benfica, it's kind of destiny story for both. Jose Mourinho will need more magic moments to beat Real Madrid again in an aggregated result after two playoff matches. This time it will be more difficult for Jose Mourinho and Benfica players because Real Madrid players did learn own hard and painful lesson which can help them preparing better for two upcoming matches.

[Bobrox]

On paper, I think Real Madrid will secure all three points when facing Rayo Vallecano, and I even predict they will score plenty of goals as a way of venting their frustration after yesterday defeat in the Champions League. We know that Rayo Vallecano are honestly not a difficult opponent for Real Madrid, and the fact that they have managed only one win in their last five matches.

Seeing performance of Rayo Vallecano last 5 matches in La Liga only winning one games actually not difficult match for Real Madrid securing three points although has bad mentality after losing from Benfica in Champion League. On other side, Madrid in the race for returning back to top position in La Liga and securing three points against Rayo Vallecano is most important match behind has opportunity Barcelona will gap to be 7 points remaining because playing early than Madrid in this matchday.

Interested waiting for how Arbeloa motivate his players after losing in Champion League match will easily bring significant improvement for winning against Rayo Vallecano?