Barcelona derby and no Mbappe for Real Madrid as La Liga returns for New Year

Madrid, Jan 1 (IANS) La Liga returns to action after a one-week Christmas hiatus this weekend with a full round of matches, which come ahead of the Spanish Supercup between Athletic Club Bilbao, Atletico Madrid, FC Barcelona, and Real Madrid to be played in Saudi Arabia the following week.

The round of games gets underway on Friday night when Rayo Vallecano are at home to Getafe in a Madrid derby between two sides in need of a positive result, with Rayo’s last league win at the end of October, while Getafe, who will be without main striker Borja Mayoral, have slipped to 11th place after three consecutive losses.

Saturday’s big game is the Barcelona derby between Espanyol and league leaders FC Barcelona, which promises to be even more feisty than usual, reports Xinhua.

Espanyol are fifth in the table after five consecutive wins and ended 2025 with a narrow 2-1 win in Bilbao, meaning hopes are high of taking three points from their bitter city rivals.

Barcelona can expect a hostile reception in Cornella, but coach Hansi Flick has Pedri fit again, although Gavi, Andreas Christensen, and Dani Olmo all remain out.

Celta Vigo and Valencia get Saturday’s matches underway with Valencia travelling to Vigo knowing that anything other than a win could see the team drop into the bottom three.

Celta have been in excellent form, climbing to seventh in La Liga, and will have benefitted from the Christmas break.

Osasuna will look to make it three consecutive home wins when they entertain Athletic Club Bilbao, which is still hampered by a long injury list that includes players such as Yuri Berchiche, Aymeric Laporte, Benat Prados, and Maroan Sannadi.

Elche ended 2025 on a high with a 4-0 win at home to Rayo Vallecano, and Eder Sarabia’s side now faces Villarreal, where he learned his trade coaching in the youth system.

Elche have lost Hector Fort to a shoulder injury, while Villarreal have a long list of absentees, including Renato Veiga, who is suspended, and Pape Gueye at the African Cup of Nations.

Two coaches make their debut on Sunday, with Luis Castro taking charge for Levante as the bottom of the table club is away to Sevilla, while Pellegrino Matarazzo makes his debut in the Anoeta Stadium as Real Sociedad takes on Atletico Madrid.

Three defeats and a draw have left Real Sociedad hovering above the drop zone, and an Atletico side with the talents of former Real Sociedad forwards, Antoine Griezmann and Alexander Sorloth, along with Julian Alvarez, looks like a tough rival, even if Alexander Baena and Nico Gonzalez are out.

Real Madrid are at home to Betis in what could be a tough game at the Santiago Bernabeu as Xabi Alonso looks to defend his job over the coming week, without the injured Kylian Mbappe, who injured his knee on Wednesday. Trent Alexander-Arnold, Dani Carvajal, and Eder Militao are also out, while Brahim Diaz is impressing in the African Cup of Nations.

Finally, Mallorca are at home to Girona in a battle between two relegation-threatened sides, and Alaves are at home to Oviedo, who said goodbye to forward Salomon Rondon during the week as new coach Guillermo Almada looks to revitalise a side that has scored just seven goals all season.

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