Where to watch Mallorca vs Real Madrid, odds, prediction, pick: how to watch Kylian Mbappe’s La Liga debut

UEFA Super Cup winners Real Madrid start their 2024-25 La Liga season against Mallorca on Sunday. Carlo Ancelotti’s men are the reigning Spanish and European champions and have now added Kylian Mbappe and Endrick to their ranks. Los Blancos finished last season with a ten-point gap over second-placed Barcelona, ​​while this weekend’s home side finished fifteenth, just seven points above the drop zone.

It is Mallorca’s fourth consecutive top-flight season and that is their best performance since 2013, although last year’s fairly close encounter with the decline led to a change of head coach, with Jagoba Arrasate joining from Osasauna. Three new faces in Villarreal’ Johan Mojica, as well as free agents Takuma Asano and Mateu Morey, while Predrag Rajkovic has left. Los Bermellones have beaten Real only once in almost five years, which was a 1-0 home win in early 2023.

Real beat Mallorca 1-0 in every La Liga match last season and they will be firm favorites here as Kylian Mbappe’s La Liga chapter gets underway. The French superstar already has a goal after the Super Cup victory over Atalanta BC, in which Jude Bellingham played deeper. The Spanish and European kings have also strengthened themselves with Endrick and will be keen to repeat last year’s efforts, which saw just one league loss. Ancelotti oversaw the best attacking and defensive performances in La Liga and now the squad is stronger, so expect a fast start.

Here are our storylines, how to watch the match and more:

How to watch and odds

• Date: Sunday August 18 | Time: 3:30 PM ET
• Location: Estadi Mallorca Son Moix – Mallorca, Spain
• TV: ESPN Deportes | Live stream: Fubo (try for free)
• Chances: Majorca +700; Sign +333; Real -225

New faces

Johan Mojica, Takuma Asano and Mateu Morey have all arrived in Mallorca in a cost-effective summer window, with Predrag Rajkovic the main departure. The obvious new boys for Real are Kylian Mbappe and Endrick, who tasted silverware in midweek as Los Blancos won the UEFA Super Cup in Warsaw against Atalanta.

Team news

Majorca: Javi Llabres has a muscle problem, but Arrasate has a strong team to choose from. A three-man backline is expected, with Mojica and Asano set to make a possible debut. Vedat Muriqi has scored 27 goals from 80 games with Mallorca in La Liga so far.

Possible Mallorca XI: Greif; Van der Hayden, Raillo, González; Maffeo, Mascarell, D Rodriguez, Mojica; Darder; Muriqi, Asano.

Real: David Alaba is still recovering from his cruciate ligament injury last year but should return in 2024, while Eduardo Camavinga will now miss at least a month due to injury. Ancelotti is likely to join Vinicius Junior, Mbappe and Rodrygo at the top, while Eder Militao is fully fit and should support Antonio Rudiger in defence, with Bellingham once again dropping deep in the middle.

Possible real XI: Courtois; Carvajal, Militao, Rudiger, Mendy; Valverde, Tchouameni, Bellingham; Rodrygo, Mbappe, Vinicius.

Prediction

Real started the week with a win and must build on that here. Mbappe already has a goal to his name, so don’t be surprised if he opens his La Liga account here. Choose: Majorca 0, Real 2.