Espanyol vs Real Madrid: Where to watch live, preview, betting odds and possible XI

Real Madrid looking to continue perfect start to season at Cornella-El Prat.

Alvaro Morata & James Rodriguez — Alvaro Morata's late goal gave Real Madrid a 2-1 win over Sporting Lisbon in midweek Reuters

Real Madrid will look to continue their perfect start to the season when they face Espanyol at the Cornella-El Prat on 18 September.

Where to watch live

Kick-off is set for 7.45pm BST. The game will be broadcast live on Sky Sports 1 HD.

Overview

After a dramatic 6-4 defeat against Sevilla in their opening match of the season, Espanyol have played out successive draws against Malaga and Real Sociedad. The Catalan club have lost their last eight head-to-head encounters with Real Madrid across all competitions.

Javi Lopez has returned to training after recovering from a leg injury, but midfielder Javi Fuego is suspended after he was sent-off late on in the Sociedad match.

Alvaro Morata scored a late winner to hand Real Madrid the three points in their Champions League opener against Sporting Lisbon at the Santiago Bernabeu. With three wins out of three, Zinedine Zidane's side are the only team with a 100% record in La Liga.

Forward Gareth Bale is likely to miss the trip to Catalonia due to a hip injury.

What managers say

Quique Flores: "We played against a very good team (Real Sociedad). I do not think we missed a great opportunity, we faced an opponent who played very good football. We want to have the ball normally without stress. It's a process and we're settling for not losing matches for now."

Zinedine Zidane: "We had to dig in, but we got three points [against Sporting Lisbon]. We're Real Madrid and we know that every game will be tough and that our opponents will make it hard for us. We didn't ever thrown the towel in and that's important. The effort put in was tremendous. When you win a game in this manner it means a lot to the squad. That's what I take away with me and I go home with a smile on my face and feeling very relaxed."