Real Madrid vs Granada. Spanish La Liga.
Santiago BernabeuAttendance67,839.
Saturday 7 January 2017 15:38, UK
Cristiano Ronaldo could return to the starting line-up when Real Madrid aim to extend their unbeaten streak to 39 games against struggling Granada in La Liga on Saturday, live on Sky Sports.
Ronaldo was rested for Wednesday's Copa del Rey last-16 first leg against Sevilla but his absence was barely noticed as Zinedine Zidane's in-form side netted three times before the break in a 3-0 win.
Real's all-time record goalscorer also sat out their previous home match, a 3-2 win over Deportivo La Coruna in December, although he did play at the Club World Cup in Japan.
Speaking about the decision to rest his star forward, Zidane said: "He's a very intelligent player and I want him to be well for the long term, and having 20 games in 70 days I want him to rest now and again. I see it like that and he sees it like that, and there's no problem.
"Of course he always wants to play, but you always get somewhere by talking about it."
Real have not lost a competitive match since going down to Wolfsburg in the Champions League last April, winning 30 of 38 matches since.
But Zidane, who recently celebrated 12 months in charge of Real, said: "It [the unbeaten record] is not the most important thing for me. I have the best players and I recognise that it's easier to win with these talented players.
"The record is a result of the hard work that is done day in, day out."
Not only are Granada stuck in the bottom two in La Liga with just one win and nine points this season, but they were beaten by Osasuna - the only team below them in the standings - in the Copa del Rey in midweek.
"We're going to approach the match in the same manner as the one against Sevilla. We're going to have an opponent who are going to make things difficult for us," said Zidane.
"The only thing we can do is be prepared to have a good game, because playing every three days gives you little time to recuperate and little time to work."
Real Madrid will be without Gareth Bale, Sergio Ramos, Pepe, Mateo Kovacic and Lucas Vazquez.
Granada are also far from full strength, though, and have seven players unavailable due to injury and Africa Cup of Nations duty.
Watch Real Madrid v Granada live on Sky Sports 2 HD from midday on Saturday.
