After an emotional week, Real Madrid turn back to the La Liga title chase as they host Celta Vigo on Sunday at the Bernabeu.
Last weekend, Madrid looked primed for Vinicius Jr's redemption tour at the Mestalla but saw a last-gasp winner at Valencia turned away by an officiating gaffe, before they were held to a 1-1 draw to RB Leipzig on Wednesday, still progressing to the Champions League quarterfinals on aggregate.
Jude Bellingham's availability for this match was up in the air throughout the week following his red card in the aftermath of the Valencia match, but he will miss this match after his truly outrageous two-game ban was somehow upheld. Los Blancos were vulnerable at the top of the La Liga table after that adverse result, but both Girona and Barcelona dropped points as well, meaning they remain seven points adrift of the pack.
Celta Vigo are mired in a relegation battle, sitting in the first safe position, but hold a five-point lead over 18th-placed Cadiz thanks to victory over last-place Almeria last time out. They had won just once through the first 16 matches of the year, but since mid-December, they've secured 14 points across their last 11 games to put them in good position to secure top flight safety.
USA: Click here to see the latest odds for Real Madrid vs Celta Vigo and bet La Liga matches
Real Madrid vs Celta Vigo prediction, odds
- Moneyline lean: Real Madrid (-380)
- Score prediction: Real Madrid 2-0 Celta Vigo
While Real Madrid continue to make life tough on themselves in recent months, there's no reason they should drop this result. They've won just one of their last seven league games by more than a one-goal margin, but it's time for the best version of Real Madrid to show its face. They will still look slightly muted without Bellingham, but Brahim Diaz has been better as he earns more consistent minutes, and they should come through in the end.
For Celta Vigo, while they've turned their early-season woes around, they remain a club that's far from competing in a match like this. The decline of Iago Aspas has been stark, likely to finish the year with his first season without double-digit league goals since 2015, and they remain too leaky at the back to make up for that missed production.
Real Madrid vs Celta Vigo match facts
- Date: Sunday, Mar. 10, 2024
- Kickoff time: 6:30 p.m. local (1:30 p.m. ET / 10:30 a.m. PT)
- Location: Santiago Bernabeu (Madrid, Spain)
- Referee: Mario Melero Lopez, VAR: Eduardo Prieto Iglesias
- Last meeting: Celta Vigo 0-1 Real Madrid (Aug. 25, 2023 | La Liga)
Real Madrid vs Celta Vigo best bet
- Pick: Under 3 total goals
- Odds: -110 (DraftKings)
Normally, against a Celta Vigo side which gave up two goals on 1.87 xGA to offensively inept Cadiz in their last road trip, this would be a great chance for Madrid to rediscover their best attacking form. Yet at this point, it's just too difficult to trust Madrid without Jude Bellingham.
Los Blancos have suffered against multiple opponents in his absence. In four La Liga matches that Bellingham has missed this season, Real Madrid scored more than two goals in just one of them, while they were also held to a 1-0 win at RB Leipzig without his influence.
Under 2.5 goals at +150 is tempting, but hedging ourselves against the possibility of Celta Vigo nicking one and forcing Madrid to go all-out up front is the smart play.
Real Madrid vs Celta Vigo prop bet
- Pick: Jorgen Strand Larsen 1+ fouls in each half
- Odds: +135 (FanDuel)
While Celta Vigo forward Jorgen Strand Larsen has only been booked four times this season, he is a master of committing fouls without seeing further punishment.
The 24-year-old Norwegian has committed 51 fouls this season, sixth-most in all of La Liga, including a whopping five in the last meeting between these two clubs. Larsen was also whistled for four fouls without a booking the last time Celta Vigo saw a match officiated by today's referee Mario Melero Lopez, a late-January defeat to Girona.
While his +340 odds to see a yellow card are enticing given the persistent fouling, he just isn't a player who commits bookable offences, and hasn't seen much punishment for repeated infringements. Instead, back him to rack up a foul count across both ends of the match at plus odds.
Real Madrid vs Celta Vigo live stream, TV channel
| TV channel | Streaming | |
| USA | ESPN Deportes | Fubo USA, ESPN+, WatchESPN |
| Canada | — | TSN+ |
| UK | Viaplay Sports 2 | Viaplay UK, LaLigaTV |
Every match of the 2023/24 La Liga season can be found on ESPN+ in the United States in both English and Spanish. This particular match has also been selected for television in the United States in Spanish on ESPN Deportes, which is available to stream on Fubo.
TSN owns the La Liga broadcast rights in Canada, placing this match exclusively on streaming service TSN+, while in the UK it will be televised on Viaplay Sports 1 and streamed on LaLigaTV.
