Elche vs Real Madrid: Mbappé, Vini and Bellingham Chase Statement Win After Break

Dek

Elche vs Real Madrid: Real Madrid return from the international break with a dangerous trip to an unbeaten-at-home Elche side. Xabi Alonso’s men, led by Kylian Mbappé, need a big response to stay on top of the LaLiga title race.[1][2]

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Key Takeaways

• Title race pressure: Real Madrid travel to Elche level on points with Barcelona at the top of LaLiga, making any slip-up after the break costly.[2][3]
• Defensive crisis vs attacking firepower: Xabi Alonso is without Carvajal, Rüdiger, Alaba, Militão, Tchouameni and Mastantuono, but still has Mbappé, Vinícius and Bellingham available.[1][4]
• Courtois race won? After a minor adductor injury, Thibaut Courtois is back in the squad and widely tipped to start in goal at Martínez Valero.[4][5]
• Elche unbeaten at home: Eder Sarabia’s Elche are mid-table, undefeated at Martínez Valero and comfortable in a 4-1-4-1 that loves to frustrate big sides.[1][6]
• All eyes on Mbappé: LaLiga’s top scorer with 13 goals, Mbappé kicks off a brutal run of four straight away days that will define Madrid’s pre-Christmas momentum.[3][7]

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Match/Context Essentials

Item	Detail
Fixture	Elche vs Real Madrid
Competition	LaLiga EA Sports 2025-26, Matchday 13
Date & Time	Sunday 23 November 2025, 21:00 CET (20:00 UTC)
Venue	Estadio Martínez Valero, Elche
Real Madrid status	Joint-top of LaLiga on 31 points, level with Barcelona after 12 games.[2][3]
Elche status	Mid-table with 15 points (3W-6D-3L), unbeaten at home so far.[1]
Referee (projected)	Francisco José Hernández (per major previews).[6]
Broadcast (examples)	Spain: Movistar LaLiga / Orange TV; US: ABC, ESPN+, ESPN Deportes.[1][6]
Real Madrid squad list	Courtois, Lunin, Mestre; Trent, Asencio, Á. Carreras, Fran García, Mendy, Huijsen; Bellingham, Camavinga, Valverde, Arda Güler, Ceballos; Vini Jr., Endrick, Mbappé, Rodrygo, Gonzalo, Brahim.[4][8]
Key absentees (Madrid)	Carvajal, Alaba, Militão, Rüdiger, Tchouameni, Mastantuono (injury).[1][4][9]
Final score	TBD – pre-match preview

Projected Real Madrid XI (not official):
Courtois; Trent, Huijsen, Asencio, Carreras; Güler, Camavinga; Valverde, Bellingham, Vinícius; Mbappé.[6][10]

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A dangerous restart for Xabi Alonso’s Real Madrid

LaLiga is back – and Real Madrid don’t get a soft landing. After a long November international break, Xabi Alonso’s team restart their domestic campaign away to Elche, under the lights at a Martínez Valero where the hosts haven’t lost this season.[1]

Barcelona’s 4–0 win over Athletic the night before lifted them to 31 points and briefly clear at the summit, only for the table to show the two giants level again once Madrid’s game in hand is accounted for.[2]In other words, Elche vs Real Madrid is more than just “the first game after the break” – it’s a test of how serious this new-look Madrid are about grinding out a title in Xabi’s first season in charge.

Injury-hit at the back, stacked up front

If Madrid arrive as favourites, they do so limping. The club’s official preview confirms that Dani Carvajal, Antonio Rüdiger, David Alaba, Éder Militão, Aurélien Tchouameni and Franco Mastantuono are all unavailable.[1][4] That’s essentially an entire back four plus your starting holding midfielder wiped out.

It forces Alonso into creative solutions. Young centre-backs Raúl Asencio and Dean Huijsen are expected to continue in the heart of the defence, shielded by a double pivot where Eduardo Camavinga must once again play the grown-up in Tchouameni’s absence.[3][10]

The good news? At the other end of the pitch Madrid are absolutely loaded. Kylian Mbappé sits atop the LaLiga scoring charts with 13 league goals already, with Vinícius Júnior and Jude Bellingham chipping in behind him.[3]Even after minor fitness scares on France duty, both Mbappé and Camavinga are expected to be fully fit for Elche.[5]

Courtois’ swift recovery and the Trent factor

Thibaut Courtois gave Madridistas a fright when a medical report on 10 November confirmed an injury to the long abductor muscle in his right leg.[11]Early estimates suggested around 10–12 days on the sidelines, and there was a real chance he’d miss Elche altogether.[5]

Instead, the Belgian is back in the squad and most outlets now predict him to start. It fits with the season narrative: despite the occasional defensive wobble, Courtois has already collected eight clean sheets in all competitions and sits among the leading goalkeepers statistically.[3]

In front of him, the other big storyline is Trent Alexander-Arnold. The England international has had an uneven start to life in Madrid, but Xabi Alonso admitted in his press conference that the break allowed Trent to train properly and “open up more options” on the right.[6] The expectation is that he returns at right-back, pushing Fede Valverde higher to reprise his hybrid right-wing role.

Elche’s unbeaten home run and clever 4-1-4-1

Elche might not be a glamour name, but their numbers at Martínez Valero demand respect. Three wins, six draws and only three defeats overall, with their unbeaten home record a key reason they sit comfortably in mid-table.[1]

Eder Sarabia favours a compact 4-1-4-1, with a single pivot screening the centre-backs and plenty of legs ahead of the ball to launch transitions. Several detailed previews line up a likely XI of Peña; Núñez, Affengruber, Chust, Pedrosa; Aguado; Diaby, Mendoza, Febas, Mir; Álex Rodríguez – a mix of hard-running midfielders and vertical wide players built to punish any sloppy Madrid rest-defence.[6][12]

For Madrid, that means two things: protect Alexander-Arnold on the right channel and avoid cheap turnovers from Güler and Bellingham in central areas. Give Elche repeated transition chances, and the atmosphere in the stadium will do the rest.

Mbappé, Vini and Bellingham – time to click again

Before the break, Madrid’s form dipped: a 1–0 defeat at Liverpool in the Champions League was followed by a flat 0–0 at Rayo Vallecano in LaLiga.[6]SI The performance in Vallecas, especially, raised questions about how well the attacking pieces were fitting together when opponents sat deep and denied space.

Elche away is the perfect laboratory. Mbappé is expected to lead the line, with Vinícius off the left and Valverde wide right, leaving Bellingham as the free man between the lines and Arda Güler deeper as a second playmaker alongside Camavinga.[6][10]On paper, it’s devastating. In practice, the challenge is spacing and rhythm:

• Let Mbappé attack the last line, not drift too deep.
• Use Vinícius’ 1v1 threat to drag Elche’s back four wider.
• Allow Bellingham to time late box arrivals instead of constantly receiving with his back to goal.

If Madrid get that balance right, it can quickly become a long night for Elche’s centre-backs.

Four away days that will define Madrid’s autumn

Xabi Alonso has been very open about the next stretch: Elche, Olympiacos, Girona, Athletic Club – four straight away games that will test squad depth and mental toughness.[1][7]

Drop points early in that run and the pressure only grows before the Champions League trip to Athens and a tricky away day in Girona’s small, intense stadium. Handle business at Elche, however, and Madrid send a clear message: the Liverpool loss and Vallecas draw were bumps, not a trend.

From a Madridista point of view, this night feels like a referendum on the team’s maturity. Title-winners handle these post-break banana skins; everyone else slips.

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FAQs

References

[1] Real Madrid CF – “Elche vs Real Madrid: LaLiga returns” (realmadrid.com, 23 Nov 2025). Real Madrid
[2] Reuters – “Barcelona mark Camp Nou return with 4-0 rout of Athletic Bilbao” (22 Nov 2025). Reuters
[3] Wikipedia / LaLiga stats – “2025–26 La Liga” & “2025–26 Real Madrid CF season” (updated Nov 2025). Wikipédia+1
[4] Real Madrid CF – “Convocatoria del Real Madrid contra el Elche” (realmadrid.com, 22 Nov 2025). Real Madrid
[5] Managing Madrid – “Courtois injury report” & “Real Madrid announce squad for Elche” (Nov 2025). Managing Madrid+1
[6] AS, Sports Illustrated & other previews – probable lineups and broadcast info for Elche vs Real Madrid (23 Nov 2025). Diario AS+2SI+2
[7] Real Madrid CF – “Real Madrid calendar up to Christmas” (realmadrid.com, 10 Nov 2025). Real Madrid
[8] BeSoccer / OneFootball – “Real Madrid squad list for trip to Elche” (22–23 Nov 2025). BeSoccer+1
[9] Tribuna / injury round-up – “Real Madrid injury list: all sidelined players and return dates” (18 Nov 2025). Tribuna
[10] Diario AS – “Alineación posible del Real Madrid hoy ante el Elche” (23 Nov 2025). Diario AS+1
[11] Real Madrid CF – “Courtois medical report” (10 Nov 2025). Real Madrid
[12] SI / other previews – Elche team news and predicted XI in 4-1-4-1 (23 Nov 2025).