FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football - Champions League - Brest v Real Madrid - Stade de Roudourou, Guingamp, France - January 29, 2025 Real Madrid players pose for a team group photo before the match REUTERS/Gonzalo Fuentes/File Photo
MADRID (Reuters) - Despite sitting top of LaLiga, reigning champions Real Madrid may feel like they have a lot to prove when they host Atletico Madrid on Saturday with their in-form city rivals eager to seize the momentum in the title race and leapfrog them in the table.
Real have failed to beat any of their top-four rivals this season and head into Saturday's derby searching for a statement victory to silence some of their doubters.
It will be the first of two massive challenges facing Carlo Ancelotti's side in the coming days, with the team also travelling to England next week for the first leg of their Champions League playoff clash at Manchester City.
Beating Diego Simeone's Atletico on Saturday could be a turning point for Ancelotti's team, who have been under scrutiny for their inconsistent form as they seek to defend their titles in both competitions.
Defeats to AC Milan and Liverpool in the Champions League hurt, but they were more severely exposed in two thrashings handed out by old rivals Barcelona.
A 4-0 loss at home in the league and a 5-1 demolition in the Spanish Super Cup raised questions as to whether Real had it in them to defend their European and domestic crowns.
Real have 49 points in LaLiga, one more than a red-hot Atletico, who have been in imperious form winning 19 of their last 21 games in all competitions.
Sterling performances from Antoine Griezmann, Julian Alvarez and Rodrigo De Paul have earned Atletico big wins at Barcelona and Paris St Germain, while Diego Simeone's side have arguably been playing some of the best football on the continent over the last few months.
While Real failed to secure a top-eight finish in the Champions League, Simeone's Atletico earned direct access to the last 16 after finishing fifth in the league-phase table.
They will also have recent history on their side when they step onto the Santiago Bernabeu pitch on Saturday.
Real have won only one of their last six capital derbies, a 5-3 extra-time victory in last-year's Super Cup in Saudi Arabia.
Atletico also handed Real their only two defeats of a near-perfect 2023-24 season in which they won the LaLiga and Champions League double.
A win at Santiago Bernabeu would give Atletico the advantage in the table at a crucial stage of the campaign, with Real under pressure having to play two extra playoff games to stay alive in the Champions League while struggling with several injuries sustained to key defensive players.
Already missing both defensive stalwart Dani Carvajal and Brazil centre back Eder Militao for the season with torn anterior cruciate ligaments, Ancelotti then lost Antonio Ruediger and David Alaba with leg muscle injuries.
The Italian coach gave 20-year-old Jacobo Ramon his first senior start alongside fellow academy player Raul Asencio in Real's 3-2 Copa del Rey win at Leganes on Wednesday, but Ancelotti has tended to use midfielder Aurelien Tchouameni at centre back to cover for his injured stars.
Lurking in third place are Barcelona, three points behind Atletico and on a nine-game unbeaten run in all competitions.
They travel to 12th-placed Sevilla on Sunday.
(Reporting by Fernando Kallas; Editing by Toby Davis)
