The first side to take on Real Madrid in 2024-25, in a match that truly counted, was RCD Mallorca. It didn’t work out too well for the underdogs, who suffered a 3-0 defeat at home to Los Blancos. But now that the reverse fixture is here, it’s time to revisit what we wrote, back at the dawn of the new season.
Real Madrid vs RCD Mallorca FYIs
Wed. May 14, 9:30pm, Estadio Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid, Spain
Real Madrid Preview Material: Team News Starting XI Prediction
Google Result Probability: Real Madrid 72% Draw 17% RCD Mallorca 11%
On August 16, in our match preview, we wrote:
“Madrid now begin the new season as overwhelming favorites to win La Liga; and UEFA Champions League too. With Kylian Mbappe now on board, the reigning European champions only got stronger. RCD Mallorca certainly knows that.
“So can anyone truly stop Los Blancos in 2024-25? Or is this simply an invincible juggernaut? RCD Mallorca will get the first crack at them.”
Seems surreal now, doesn’t it? All those sky high expectations, not coming even remotely close to being met.
Madrid will end this season with no real trophies* at all, while at the same time, seeing their arch-rivals, FC Barcelona, accomplish a domestic treble.
As for that *, well, Real Madrid did achieve UEFA Super Cup glory over Atalanta in Warsaw, Poland this preseason. So they did add one trophy to the cabinet.
Real Madrid Starting Lineup Prediction vs RCD Mallorca
Thibaut Courtois; Lucas Vázquez, Raul Asencio, Aurelien Tchouameni, Fran García; Federico Valverde, Endrick, Jude Bellingham; Brahim Diaz, Arda Guler, Kylian Mbappe
Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He currently contributes to USA Today’s NFL Wires Network. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, the Washington Post and ESPN. You can follow him on Linked In and Twitter