Carlo Ancelotti and his Real Madrid side will be determined to close the gap between them and Barcelona at the top of the La Liga table when they host Almeria on Wednesday night.
The pressure will be on the home side after Barcelona’s 6-0 demolition of Getafe on Tuesday opened the gap between the two rivals to five points. Madrid are a good run of form of late winning seven consecutive matches with the latest being a 4-2 victory over Celta Vigo.
Madrid will be desperate for a victory in this match with a crucial week ahead of them with games against Sevilla and Valenica aswell as their Champions League semi-final against Juventus.
Ancelotti said: "It's a time of the season when all the games are life and death for every team.
"We have to prepare this match (against Almeria) bearing in mind that it comes before a very difficult and very demanding run of games.
A struggling Almeria will give their opponents some trouble based on their recent run of form, the visitors have picked up six points in their last available nine.
Victories at home to Granada and a 2-0 win against Eibar at the weekend has helped them lift outside of the relegation zone just two points ahead of Deportivo and six ahead of Granada.
The home side have some major absentees from their side ahead of this game. Gareth Bale, Karim Benzema and Luka Modric are all out through injury while Sergio Ramos and Dani Carvajal are suspended.
Due to these injuries 16-year-old Martin Odegaard make his first-ever La Liga appearance.
Ancelotti added: "Tomorrow in the squad there will be three youth-team players," Ancelotti said on Tuesday. "Odegaard, (Borja) Mayoral and Diego Llorente. I think two of the three will be on the bench and they could get an opportunity to play."
The only changes that the visitors will have to make are enforced with Thievy Bifourna and Wellington Silva who are suspended. Sebastian Dubarbier will return from his own suspension and slot into the left-back position but; Fran Velez, Fernando Soriano and Michel Macedo are still sidelined.