Football Bet of the Day: Blancos to bounce back

Real revenge on the cards

Alcoyano v Real Madrid
Wednesday 05 January, 20:30

Amidst a blizzard, Cliftonville suffered their first home defeat of the season as they lost 2-0 to Crusaders, while we suffered our first defeat of 2022. I would suggest it's snow joke, but that would be beneath me.

We'll nip to Spain now, as league leaders Real Madrid look to right a historical wrong as they take on lower-league Alcoyano in the Copa del Rey. Los Blancos crashed out against the same opposition last season, but despite a recent COVID-19 outbreak, they should still be able to achieve a better
result this time around.

Carlo Ancelotti accused his players of mentally still being on holiday at the weekend, as they lost 1-0 at local rivals Getafe, suffering only their second league defeat of the season. The Italian wants a response, and the squad he has named for this game is stronger than expected. Thibault Courtois, Karim Benzema and Luka Modric have all been left out, and Vinicius Junior has COVID-19, but the likes of Eder Militao, David Alaba, Toni Kroos and Eden Hazard are all in the squad.

Alcoyano came through on penalties against Levante in the previous round, but they are mid-table in the regional leagues, and they have lost their last three league matches without scoring. I don't anticipate another shock here against the team that has shone the brightest in La Liga, and I'll back Real -1.5 & -2.0 on the Asian Handicap at 1.824/5. A two-goal win for the Madrid giants gives us a half-win, and we get a full payout if Real win by three goals or more.