Real Madrid and Jose Mourinho will know nothing short of three points will do against a struggling yet dangerous Athletic Bilbao side in their La Liga game on Saturday.
Real could possibly be eleven points behind leaders Barcelona before kickoff, with the Catalans set to take on Real Zaragoza in the earlier match. The Spanish champions, however, will be boosted by the news that Cristiano Ronaldo is fit after suffering a nasty gash above his eye, which required six stitches, in the previous game against Levante.
"They are always a tough opponent, and have a lot of history in La Liga and knowing them as I do, despite having absences they will still be competitive," Real assistant manager Aitor Karanka said.
"The team is very good physically and the fact that matches are won towards the end means that we keep going right up until the last moment and that, despite the absences, we never give up."
Real picked up a narrow 2-1 win over Levante last weekend, with Ronaldo having to be taken off at half-time after scoring Real's opening goal, in a nearly unplayable pitch and it is an effort which was really appreciated by the coaching staff.
"We can't control the external criticism or praise," he said. "We know the effort that the players made and the character that they showed to turn around difficult situations.
"It was a match that was not best suited to our style of play, but it was a match in which we saw other aspects of our team."
Reports have surfaced yet again of Ronaldo being unhappy at the club, leading to suggestions he might leave in the January transfer window or next summer, but Karanka insisted there are no problems.
"The coach already said the other day in the press room that there are questions that don't deserve answers," he said. "The images of the match against Levante are there for all to see and there is no need to dwell on what happened.
"Anyone who knows Cristiano Ronaldo knows that he has to be really bad to not be out on the field. Tomorrow he will give everything for this team, as he always does."
Mesut Ozil, Sami Khedira and Karim Benzema, who missed last week's game which in turn forced Mourinho to play Ronaldo in the center forward position, are expected to be available for Real against Bilbao.
To watch Real Madrid vs Athletic Bilbao Live Stream, click here.
Expected lineups: Real Madrid: Casillas; Arbeloa, Pepe, Ramos, Coentrao; Alonso Khedira; Di Maria, Ozil, Ronaldo; Benzema.
Athletic Bilbao: Iraizoz; Iraola, San Jose, Amorebieta, Aurtenetxe; Gurpegui, Iturraspe; Susaeta, Muniain, Gomez; Aduriz.
Prediction: 3-1 to Real
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