Osasuna vs Real Madrid
Real Madrid finally usurped Barcelona at the top of the La Liga standings after weeks of playing catch-up, and they are keen to steal the title from their El Clásico rivals eventually. Los Blancos are the most in-form team in Spain right now, and they’re keen to make it nine league wins in a row when they visit Osasuna at El Sadar on Saturday night.
Alvaro Arbeloa has his boys picking up momentum. Since dropping his first game against Albacete in the Copa del Rey, he has only lost once in their last seven games across all competitions. Earlier this week, Real Madrid picked up an important 1-0 win over Benfica in the opening leg of their Champions League play-off tie.
Osasuna are also undefeated in their last five league games, although they’re coming off a goalless draw against Elche. Alessio Lisci’s side is 10th in the Spanish top-flight with 30 points.
Talking Points
Budimir has help at Osasuna
Osasuna have made it clear they’re gunning for European football next season, and they seem to be on their way. Their five-game unbeaten run certainly helps, and Ante Budimir has been the centre of their remarkable rise.
In the past few weeks, Los Rojillos have scored 10 goals while conceding six on the other end, and Budimir has accounted for half of their scoring output (five). The 34-year-old striker, who became the foreign player with the most goals in the history of the Pamplona-based club last month, now has 11 league goals this term, making him one of the frontrunners for the Pichichi trophy (fourth).
However, Osasuna cannot be over-reliant on Budimir. Fortunately for them, they’ve done well enough in the winter transfer window to provide help for their evergreen forward.
They recruited Javi Galan from Atletico Madrid, and the veteran wing-back has been an instant hit at the starting left-back position. Meanwhile, promising young winger Raul Moro joined Osasuna from Ajax for only €5 million. Former Real Madrid youngster Victor Munoz has also found his form. The 22-year-old forward has scored in two of his last five appearances and is now the joint-second-leading scorer with four goals this term.
Vinicius Jr. showing signs of life at Real Madrid
Real Madrid are peaking at the right time, as Vinicius Jr. has regained his mojo in the past couple of games. The Brazilian forward has scored in each of his last three La Liga appearances (three goals), and he scored the marginal goal against Benfica (1-0) in the first leg of their Champions League play-off tie last Tuesday night.
Vinicius Jr. will be highly motivated to vent his ire on Osasuna this weekend after he was allegedly on the receiving end of racial abuse during their recent visit to Lisbon. He now has eight league goals and five assists this term, making him Los Blancos’ second-leading scorer behind Kylian Mbappe.
History
In Xabi Alonso’s first La Liga game as head coach, Real Madrid eked out a 1-0 win against Osasuna in the opening-day fixture at the Bernabeu last August 2025, as Kylian Mbappe scored the winning penalty early in the second half. It didn’t help Los Rojillos that they were reduced to 10 men after Abel Bretones received a questionable red card for his shove on Gonzalo Garcia during stoppage time.
Saturday marks the 97th meeting between Los Blancos and Los Rojillos. The former has a significant edge in the overall head-to-heads with 63 wins, while the latter has only 13 wins and 20 draws. At El Sadar, Real Madrid have 23 wins, while Osasuna have 11 wins and 13 draws. Manager Alessio Lisci has lost two consecutive games against Real Madrid.
Betting Tip
The La Liga 2026 odds have Real Madrid as the favourites to claim maximum points at El Sadar. Real Madrid are 1.69 to win, Osasuna are 4.25 underdogs, and a draw is valued at 3.65 in the 1X2 market.
While their previous encounter was a low-scoring game, we expect more La Liga 2026 highlights on Saturday for the football fans to enjoy. Besides rooting for Los Blancos to win, SBOTOP punters may also want to add alternatives like Over 2.50 at 1.66, Over 2.75 at 1.88, and Total Goals 2-3 at 2.04 to the parlay.
However, if you don’t agree, you can go for the unders. While you’re at it, check out the Correct Score of 1-0 in favour of Los Blancos – the result of the reverse fixture – given its tidy payday of 7.80 your bet.
A SHORT EXPLANATION ON HOW OUR (⭐) BETS ARE WORTH:
⭐⭐⭐= €20 (HIGHLY CONFIDENT)
⭐⭐= €10 (CONFIDENT)
⭐= €5 (SOMEWHAT CONFIDENT)
Disclaimer: Odds are correct at time of publish.
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