Real Madrid line-up vs Girona: Asensio starts as some players are rested Real Madrid vs Girona Play in Sunday's early kick-off Marco Asensio will want to take advantage of his start against Girona at the Santiago Bernabeu on Sunday as he looks to follow on from his winning goal against Ajax in the Champions League in midweek. Elsewhere in the Real Madrid side, Dani Carvajal, Sergio Reguilon, Luka Modric and Vinicius Junior have all been rested, with Alvaro Odriozola, Marcelo, Dani Ceballos and Asensio all coming in; Reguilon and Modric are not even in the 18-man squad for the fixture. Gareth Bale is another of the players who will start the game on the bench as Lucas Vazquez is given the nod, while Karim Benzema retains his place in the side, despite suffering a hip problem away at Ajax. Raphael Varane, meanwhile, returns to the line-up after missing the game against Ajax as Nacho is dropped to the bench. Real Madrid's starting line-up: Thibaut Courtois; Alvaro Odriozola, Raphael Varane, Sergio Ramos, Marcelo; Casemiro, Dani Ceballos, Toni Kroos; Lucas Vazquez, Karim Benzema, Marco Asensio. Real Madrid's bench: Keylor Navas, Dani Carvajal, Nacho, Fede Valverde, Gareth Bale, Vinicius Junior, Mariano Diaz. Girona's starting line-up: Bono; Pedro Porro, Jonas Ramalho, Pedro Alcala, Juanpe, Raul Garcia; Pere Pons, Granell; Douglas Luiz, Portu; Cristhian Stuani. Girona's bench: Gorka Iraizoz, Carles Planas, Valery Fernandez, Paik Seung-ho, Aleix Garcia, Patrick Roberts, Choco Lozano.<doc-sep>Sports Mole provides the team news, predicted lineups and a full preview of Sunday's La Liga clash between Real Madrid and Girona. Real Madrid will be looking to record their sixth straight La Liga victory when they welcome Girona to the Bernabeu on Sunday morning. Madrid have been victorious in their last five league fixtures to close the gap on leaders Barcelona to six points, while Girona have lost each of their last four to drop into 17th position in the table. Real Madrid © Reuters Not too long ago, it appeared that the 2018-19 season would go down as a very disappointing one for Madrid. It is funny how quickly things can change, though, with an impressive run of form seeing confidence return. Madrid have risen from fourth in La Liga to second, with last weekend's 3-1 victory away to Atletico Madrid moving the Whites just behind Barcelona. As it stands, the gap is only six points from first to second, suggesting that Santiago Solari's side are very much in a title race this season. Not since January 6 have Madrid failed to win in the league, with victories over Real Betis, Sevilla, Espanyol, Alaves and Atletico in their last five. It is still Barcelona's title to lose, but Madrid have at least placed themselves in a decent position to capitalise on any dropped points. Los Blancos will also enter this match off the back of a 2-1 win at Ajax in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 clash on Wednesday night. The Dutch outfit were impressive on the night, but the reigning champions triumphed to place themselves in a strong position ahead of the second leg next month. Madrid also have the Copa del Rey to think about as they prepare to host Barcelona for the second leg of their semi-final on February 27. The last-four tie is delicately poised following a 1-1 draw in the first leg earlier this month and Los Blancos will be eyeing domestic success, which has been hard to secure in recent years. It is a huge period of the season for Solari's side when considering that they will face Girona and Levante in their next two, before back-to-back matches against Barcelona in the Copa del Rey and the league. March 5 then brings the second leg of their last-16 Champions League clash with Ajax. Madrid have already faced Girona three times this season - once in the league and twice in the Copa del Rey - and have three victories to their name. Girona will be the fresher of the two teams, but the home side are the strong favourites to put another three points on the board. Recent form: LWWWWW Recent form (all competitions): WWWDWW Girona © Reuters The 2017-18 campaign proved to be Girona's first ever season in La Liga; there is absolutely no question that the team performed above expectations, with a 10th-place finish quite remarkable. The Catalan outfit had an excellent first half of the season, but it would be fair to say that things have dropped off in recent weeks. Indeed, they will enter this weekend's clash with Madrid having not collected all three points in a league match since winning at Espanyol on November 25. Since then, Eusebio Sacristan's side have played 10 times in the league, drawing four and losing six. Worryingly, they will enter the clash with Madrid off the back of four straight defeats, the last of which was a 2-0 home reverse to Huesca on February 9. Only Real Valladolid have scored fewer than Girona's 23 La Liga goals this season, which will not exactly fill the supporters with too much confidence heading to the Bernabeu on Sunday morning. As mentioned, it will be the fourth meeting between the two teams this season and their third over the last month. The Catalan outfit lost home and away to Madrid in the Copa del Rey in January, while they suffered a 4-1 defeat in the reverse league match earlier this season. Just one point separates 17th-placed Girona from 18th-placed Rayo Vallecano heading into Week 24, and ending the latest round of matches in the relegation zone would be a real worry for the club. That said, Madrid do have bigger fish to fry at the moment and Girona certainly have the players to make it very difficult for Los Blancos this weekend. Recent form: DDLLLL Recent form (all competitions): LLLLLL Team News © Reuters Raphael Varane missed the clash with Ajax due to illness and the Frenchman did not train with his teammates on Friday, suggesting that he is unlikely to feature this weekend. Isco has returned to the training field following a back problem, but Madrid still have injuries in the shape of Luca Zidane and Marcos Llorente, who will both miss out this weekend. It seems likely that Solari will make changes from the clash with Ajax, meaning that Lucas Vazquez, Marco Asensio and Marcelo could return to the XI. Jesus Vallejo was also on the bench on Wednesday night having returned from injury, and the Spaniard will battle Nacho for the starting role alongside Sergio Ramos in central defence. Girona, meanwhile, will be without the services of Bernardo Espinosa, who received a red card in his team's 2-0 home defeat to Huesca last weekend. Johan Mojica, Aday, Seydou Doumbia and Marc Muniesa are all still injured, meaning that Eusebio does not have too many options for change. Neither Anthony Lozano nor Douglas Luiz featured against Huesca, but both will be hoping for minutes this weekend. Leading scorer Cristhian Stuani, meanwhile, will lead the away side's attack. Real Madrid possible starting lineup: Courtois; Carvajal, Nacho, Ramos, Marcelo; Ceballos, Kroos, Casemiro; Asensio, Benzema, Lucas Girona possible starting lineup: Bounou; R Garcia, Juanpe, Ramalho; Valery, Pons, A Garcia, Porro; Portu, Stuani, Lozano Head To Head As mentioned, the pair have already locked horns on three occasions this season. Madrid were 4-1 winners in the reverse league match, while they beat Girona 7-3 on aggregate in the Copa del Rey.<doc-sep>For the last few weeks, Real Madrid has been on a hot streak. The team had not lost in LaLiga since January 6th, moved onto the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey and are partly through their Champions League Round-of-16 match up. Within recent weeks, Sevilla, Atletico Madrid and Ajax were all defeated at the hands of the Whites but it was Girona who managed to finally serve Madrid only their second loss in 42 days. But what happened at the Bernabeu? Was it Solari’s changed lineup or should it be solely the players who take responsibility? Full ratings below: Thibaut Courtois - 6: Right from the start, Courtois was trying to prove himself as the better goalkeeper for the next round of matches but his performance was not the best. Managed to make use of his tall frame and forced Girona to take shots from tight angles (which included taking a ball to the face) but could have done better to stop the second goal from going in. Alvaro Odriozola - 6: Did very well in replace of Dani Carvajal. Had a lot of influence up front and worked well in tight spaces along the wings. Drew a few fouls which helped the team as well but would have been nice to see some attempts to assist his teammates. Raphael Varane - 6.5: The Frenchman was the only stable defender in Madrid’s backline. Always found himself in the right places and did well to mark Cristhian Stuani. Covered a lot of ground when his fellow defenders wanted to move up in attack and was a threat in the box. Decent match for the youngster. Sergio Ramos - 5.5: Not a very good game for the Captain at all. Had a handball in the box that lead to the penalty and was given the first of his two yellows because of that. Now set to miss the match against Levante with the red card. Marcelo - 5.5: Did well to try and make an impact after being selected to start over Sergio Reguilon but his vulnerability at the back was the reason for the second Girona goal. His playing doesn’t suit the team as well as it used too and costs the team as a result. Toni Kroos - 7: Without Luka Modric, Kroos managed to dominate the midfield for Madrid. Fully commanded the possession of the ball and worked well with Casemiro. Often took chances going forward when the team’s attack was lacking and dropped back to help defend Marcelo’s open gaps. All around excellence, MOTM for Madrid in my opinion. Casemiro - 6.5: Had a good game today and was an important player going forward. Scored the opening goal by being very fluid within the box, moving in and around defenders to find open space. Did well to help Kroos in the midfield but was booked in the second half for a flimsy foul. Decent game for the Brazilian. Dani Ceballos - 5: Absolute disastrous game for Ceballos today. Looked as though Madrid were only playing with 10 men on the pitch. Seemed very nervous whenever he had the ball and was routinely out of position. Was subbed off for Mariano Diaz as a result, surprised he was not taken off earlier. Lucas Vazquez - 5.5: Nice to see Vazquez back on the pitch but he seemed very quiet going forward and was having trouble linking up with Benzema, Marcelo and Asensio. Didn’t seem to work well with the new lineup and was eventually taken off by Solari in the 58th minute. Karim Benzema - 6: Surprisingly, did not find the back of the net today but had plenty of chances to do so. Two good chances in the first half were squandered and missed clear opportunities in the second. Finishing definitely off-point today, hopefully it changes for the team’s next match. Marco Asensio - 6: Started off well and had a few direct shots on target but often found himself all alone with the ball up front. While that is good, he needs to find a way to incorporate other players into the game rather than be 1 vs. 3 against defenders. Nice to have him back in the squad and should improve with more playing time. Substitutes: Vinicius Junior - 6.5: Came on in the 58th minute for Lucas Vazquez and immediately had an impact. Started created space along the wings and took a few shots but they failed to hit the back of the net. Personally needs to improve on his finishing but did well when creating plays with his teammates. Gareth Bale - 6: Was Solari’s second substitution of the match and was expected to make an impact but failed to do so. Had a few good performances prior to today’s but still needs to work harder to get back to 100%. Mariano Diaz: 5.5: Came on for Ceballos but was only on the pitch for 15 minutes. Did not have much of an impact on the pitch and needs to work on his confidence because he’s very isolated on the pitch. Madridista’s all over the world were dreaming of Madrid coming from behind to beat Barcelona to the title but it looks as though that is no an option. They now sit nine points behind the current leaders. Going forward, the team has some important matches so it makes sense Solari opted for a change in the lineup. But was it worth it? We will never know.<doc-sep>Real Madrid's four-game winning run in La Liga came to an end on Sunday as they suffered a shock home defeat by Girona. Casemiro had put the hosts ahead with a header in the first-half and they looked to be easing towards a win that would close the gap on Barcelona to six points. But a Cristian Stuani penalty and Cristian Portu header in the second-half turned it around and saw Girona claim their first ever win at the Bernabeu. Sergio Ramos saw red for two bookable offences late in the game. If you're viewing on the MOBILE APP PLEASE CLICK HERE.<doc-sep>
Real Madrid v Girona: The rediscovery of Asensio LaLiga Santander Could be an addition to the line-up Marco Asensio is set to be a fundamental player for Real Madrid in the final part of the season. In view of his performances in recent games and the praise from Santiago Solari, it seems that he has a good chance of fulfilling those expectations. At the moment, Asensio looks set to be given a chance in the line-up in which Solari is likely to make changes against Girona due to the wear and tear of the last three games. Asensio has recovered the confidence he had lost at the start of the season and after the injury he suffered in the semi-final of the Club World Cup. Called upon to be one of the main men for Real this season, Asensio had gone unnoticed of late on the field and made noise with his statements off the field which did not go down too well. All that, together with the bad results, had him enduring his worst days as a professional footballer. But 2019 is another situation entirely. Solari approached him during his injury and made him see that, at 100 percent, he could be a key player. Asensio accepted the challenge and started working like an animal during his recovery to repay the coach's faith in him. Off the field, supported by his father, brother and agent who are three key figures in his career, he informed them of his intent. The final result is a confident player who, as he did in Amsterdam, gives everything during the time he has on the field. Against Ajax, in the final 20 minutes, he had six shots on goal and scored one, while also giving off a sense of danger that he had not for some time. Now, every time he does so, he does with his sharp fangs baring. Solari is very much responsible for the confidence that the Spain international has rediscoverd and the new ambition he has to go with it. The coach wants a greater goal output from the 23-year-old and asked him to recover the form of his first season. In addition, he will also be played where he is most comfortable, attacking via the centre or the right, with total freedom of movement. In fact, it is very likely that he will play many of his games as a false nine, a position he could occupy against Girona on Sunday. Solari is clear that Asensio is one of the highest quality players in the squad and is doing everything possible to fulfil that potential at a tactical, technical and psychological level. "Because of his talent, he can play in any position in attack and has became very strong, as he has shown in every game he has played," the coach told reporters on Saturday. Madrid welcome Girona with more than renewed optimism. The Estadio Santiago Bernabeu faithful welcome the team home after successful voyages to the Camp Nou, Wanda Metropolitano and the Johan Cruyff Arena. The positivity has returned among fans and the stadium is expected to fill out and thus end the cold atmosphere that has plagued recent games. Solari wants to continue the winning streak with five straight wins in the league plus a Clasico draw in the Copa del Rey and win at Ajax. The dilemma for him is whether to stay true with his line-up or give them some rest.