MADRID, Jan. 23 (Xinhua) -- Real Madrid faces a difficult match away to Villarreal on Saturday which will help to confirm if the arrival of Alvaro Arbeloa as first team coach has brought around a genuine turnaround in fortune.
Real Madrid travels to play the team currently third in La Liga after a 6-1 thrashing of Monaco in the Champions League on Tuesday, with an impressive attacking display against a rival that was very poor in defense.
That win follows a 2-0 victory at home to struggling Levante in which Real Madrid's players were booed nearly all game in the wake of the painful 3-2 Copa del Rey defeat to Albacete which kicked off Arbeloa's time in charge.
"I hope that the win against Monaco is a turning point," said the Real Madrid coach.
"We have a lot of work to do, but I have seen the squad with a willingness to work every since I took over here," he added.
Looking at Real Madrid's last three rivals, Villarreal looks like a reliable test for Real Madrid's current form and title hopes, with Villarreal seven points behind Arbeloa's side in the table and with a game in hand.
"This is a really important game, because of who our rival is: it is one of the toughest away games in La Liga and we have to be at our best if we want to win," commented Arbeloa in his pre-game press conference on Friday
Real Madrid's injury problems continue for the game, with Antonio Rudiger still out with a knee problem, while Ferland Mendy has a muscle problem and Aurelien Tchouameni is suspended.
Rodrygo should return after training on Friday, while Brahim Diaz also returns after the African Cup of Nations, but Trent Alexander Arnold and Eder Militao are still out of action.
Villarreal goes into the game after losing 2-0 to Betis last weekend and a 2-1 loss at home to Ajax in the Champions League, to continue its miserable European campaign.
The defeat to Betis was only Villarreal's fourth defeat in La Liga this season, but the first three losses were against Real and Atletico Madrid and FC Barcelona, which implies it is still a step behind the big-three clubs in Spain. ■
