Real Madrid vs Salzburg Prediction: 22/1/2025

Real Madrid, the reigning Champions League holders, have had an eventful competition this season. The Spanish giants lie 20th in the overall standings with just nine points from six matches. Their campaign has been a rollercoaster ride, as they first struggled to a 3-1 win over Stuttgart, then lost to Lille 1-0, Dortmund 5-2, AC Milan 3-1, and Liverpool 2-0. But they did get back on track with a 3-2 victory over Atalanta. Domestically, Real Madrid find themselves in an intense fight for the La Liga title with both Atlético Madrid and Barcelona. Ahead of the Salzburg clash, Real Madrid have a Spanish Super Cup final against Barcelona and a La Liga fixture with Las Palmas at home.

On the other side, RB Salzburg’s Champions League campaign has been disastrous, leaving them with practically no chance of making it through. Ranked 32nd in the standings, they have earned a mere three points across six matches. Heavier losses to Sparta Prague 3-0, Brest 4-0, Dinamo Zagreb 2-0, Bayer Leverkusen 5-0, and PSG 3-0 underlined their struggles, while the only win came against Feyenoord 3-1. And also to their Austrian league, whereby winter break, they were out of the title reckoning. Fresh from their debacle at a friendly in Munich to Bayern, that was ended 6-0 and in dire need of regaining some confidence comes a low-key outing in a dead rubber with Midtjylland.

Real Madrid enter this matchup with long-term casualties: defenders Dani Carvajal and Éder Militão, along with Joan Martínez. The presence of these two attacking sensations-Vinícius Júnior and Kylian Mbappé-will even make the absence of some big players irrelevant for the team. This season, Vinícius has eight goals and five assists in La Liga, adding to five Champions League goals, while Mbappé netted ten in La Liga and two in Europe in his first season in Spain. In midfield, Camavinga, Valverde and Jude Bellingham will ensure the creativity and control with the latter having a season to remember in the Spanish La Liga, netting seven times and providing five assists.

Salzburg, in contrast, have an uphill task at the Bernabéu. The visitors will be without injured midfielder Tijani while defender Piatkowski, striker Karim Konaté and midfielder Kjaergaard are doubts. Additionally, their recent signing, Onisiwo, is ineligible for this match. The main attacking threat from Salzburg will come through the young Israeli forward Oscar Gloukh, who has netted seven league goals this season, with former Saint-Étienne midfielder Lucas Gourna-Douath expected to feature in a key role in midfield.

Prediction

Real Madrid has been dominant at home, with 17 wins in their last 20 matches at the Santiago Bernabéu. In contrast, Salzburg badly loses away from home, having lost 14 of their last 21 on the road in this competition. Regarding the respective forms of both teams, this match seems heavily inclined toward the team of Real Madrid.

Prediction: Real Madrid 5 – 1 Salzburg