Zinedine Zidane may look to his bench to freshen up his attack in the second half. Odegaard could be a great choice to try and unlock this tough and disciplined Granada backline.
The sides head into their half-time team talks level in a match that has been exciting but lacking so far in real quality. The visitors should have been ahead in the first minute but Puertas missed a golden opportunity from close range. Real Madrid have controlled the majority of possession but have lacked that cutting edge upfront with Benzema quiet.
45' + 3' HALF-TIME: REAL MADRID 0-0 GRANADA.
45' + 2' Valverde cuts a ball from the right wing back to Benzema on the edge of the box, but the French forward’s shot is blocked by a Granada defender. The away side try to break from the resulting corner but Carvajal does well to tackle Kenedy on the halfway line.
45' There’ll be a minimum of three minutes of additional time played here in this LaLiga clash.
42' The home side are just knocking the ball around at present - from side to side - trying to force a chance and a mistake from the Granada defence. It’s patient build-up but there’s been little reward for their effort so far this evening.
40' Granada are doing a fantastic job of pressuring the hosts when they have the ball at the back. Soldado is constantly putting Varane and Ramos under pressure whilst Kenedy and Puertas keep swapping wings to try and keep Carvajal and Mendy guessing.
37' I'm afraid it looks like Rodrygo has pulled his left groin and will have to be replaced. That's tough on the Real Madrid forward who has been in good form of late.
36' Rodrygo bursts into the Granada box from the left and takes a tumble. The referee isn’t interested in any penalty claims, but the young Brazilian forward looks in trouble and may be forced off with a muscular injury.
34' Real Madrid have just lacked that extra bit of quality in the attacking third so far tonight. They have had chances but no clear-cut ones of note just yet and Benzema hasn’t been too involved to date.
31' It’s very compact from Granada who are sitting back when their opposition hold the ball. The visitors have only lost four times in LaLiga this campaign and have played very well in the Europa League where they qualified from Group E as runners-up to Dutch side PSV.
29' Real Madrid swing in a set piece and the ball lands to Carvajal on the edge of the box but his volley from 30 yards is blocked out for a corner. Soon after, Varane sees a header float over the Granada crossbar from the resulting set piece.
26' Granada grab a corner of their own, but Courtois does well to reach the cross and punch clear under pressure.
23' Vazquez receives the ball on the right wing and tries to take on his man, but Neva is on hand to tackle the Spanish international and the ball goes out for another Real Madrid corner. The subsequent delivery is easily dealt with by the Granada back line and the danger is cleared.
21' Both Kenedy on the left and Puertas on the right are working hard to track back and cover their full-backs as Real Madrid attack. Granada will need to offer plenty of discipline to grab a positive result tonight in Madrid.
18' Real Madrid have lost two of their last five home LaLiga games against Andalusian sides (W2 D1), as many defeats as in their previous 48 games at home against them in the competition (W43 D3 L2). Granada fans will certainly be hoping that their side can pile more misery on the hosts with an unlikely victory this evening.
15' CLOSE! A trademark Kroos strike from distance just whistles past Silva’s near post. That wasn’t too far away from the German international!
13' Here’s to hoping that the pace of the match will keep up for the whole 90 minutes. It’s fluid, end-to-end entertaining football so far from both sides with both having a point to prove in this fixture.
11' It looks like Granada will in fact play in their more familiar 4-3-3 formation tonight. Herrera is playing in central midfield whilst Kenedy – on loan from Premier League side Chelsea - will play from the left wing.
9' An error from Courtois gives Kenedy a look at goal. The Belgian goalkeeper mishandles an attempted through ball and Kenedy swivels and aims an attempt at goal. Thankfully for the hosts, Courtois recovers to make a simple save.
8' Real Madrid again push forward and this time Rodrygo sees his attempt from distance saved comfortably by Silva. It’s been a very positive start from the hosts.
6' As expected, it’s the hosts who are dominating the early possession in this LaLiga clash despite that massive early chance falling for Granada. It’ll be key for the midfield trio of Kroos, Casemiro and Valverde to control this match for the home side.
4' Real Madrid respond with a chance of their own through Benzema. The French forward receives the ball on the edge of the Granada penalty area, but his shot is saved behind for a corner. Nothing comes of the resulting set piece.
2' HUGE CHANCE! Granada should be ahead in the opening minute. A poor pass from Varane is seized upon by Soldado who feeds Puertas in on goal. The forward shoots first time from 20 yards out but he skies his opportunity. That’s a huge let off for the hosts.
1' Referee Juan Martinez Munuera blows his whistle and we’re underway here in the Spanish capital!
The players are emerging from the tunnel and kick-off is just moments away.
Real Madrid have won their last 10 LaLiga games against Granada, scoring 3.4 goals per game on average. It’s their longest winning run against a single opponent, among the LaLiga 2020/21 teams.
Granada arrive in town full of confidence but with a few significant injury concerns so the side from the south coast opt to make changes. Duarte and Vallejo are joined by Herrera in central defence as Kenedy starts alongside Eteki and Milla in midfield. Former Tottenham Hotspur forward Soldado leads the line for the visitors with Puertas his partner upfront.
Real Madrid boss Zinedine Zidane opts for arguably his strongest XI tonight as his side go in search of another La Liga win. Ramos and Varane start in the heart of defence with Carvajal and Mendy in the two full-back positions. Casemiro anchors the midfield alongside Kroos and Valverde whilst Vazquez and Rodrygo flank talisman Benzema up top for the hosts. Luke Modric misses out due to fitness concerns.
GRANADA SUBS: Aaron Escandell, Joao Costa, Quini, Nehuen Perez, Pepe Sanchez, German Sanchez, Ramon Azeez, Alberto Soro, Jorge Molina, Luis Suarez.
GRANADA (5-3-2): Rui Silva; Dimitri Foulquier, Jesus Vallejo, Yangel Herrera, Domingos Duarte, Carlos Neva; Luis Milla, Yan Eteki, Kenedy; Antonio Puertas, Roberto Soldado.
REAL MADRID SUBS: Andriy Lunin, Marcelo, Nacho, Eder Militao, Alvaro Odriozola, Isco, Martin Odegaard, Marco Asensio, Mariano, Eden Hazard, Luka Jovic, Vinicius Junior.
REAL MADRID (4-3-3): Thibaut Courtois; Daniel Carvajal, Raphael Varane, Sergio Ramos, Ferland Mendy; Federico Valverde, Casemiro, Toni Kroos; Lucas Vazquez, Karim Benzema, Rodrygo.
Fans receive an early festive treat tonight as LaLiga champions Real Madrid play host to a strong Granada side who themselves have one eye on Champions League qualification this season. The hosts are in need of another three points as they look to hunt down cross city rivals Atletico who currently occupy top spot whilst a win for Granada would push them up to fifth in the current standings.
Hello and welcome to our live text commentary of this LaLiga fixture between Real Madrid and Granada.
