Real Madrid is back at home.
Fresh off a 2-1 win over Espanyol in Barcelona on Saturday, Jose Mourinho returns to the Bernabeu as manager of Los Blancos for the first time since 2013.
The club hosts Real Sociedad, which comes in after tasting defeat to Real Betis in its season opener.
Madrid needed a 90th-minute goal from Carlos Espi to take all three points and will be hoping for a more crisp performance in front of the home fans, who expect to contend with rival Barcelona for the La Liga title this season.
And after making their Real Madrid debuts, it may already be time for summer signings Marc Cucurella and Yan Diomande to get their first starts wearing the white jerseys.
The question is whether Diomande will get the starting nod over Arda Guler,
who started the opener. Eduardo Camavinga is also aiming to wrest a place in the 11 back from Bernardo Silva, who started against Espanyol.
Aurélien Tchouaméni, Endrick and Raúl Asencio are not expected to play a role after not participating in full training with various knocks.
Here's our projected starting XI for Real Madrid's home debut for the 2026-27 La Liga season:
Real Madrid starting lineup vs Espanyol
- Goalkeeper: Thibaut Courtois
- Defenders: Denzel Dumfries, Ibrahima Konaté, Dean Huijsen, Marc Cucurella
- Central midfielders: Federico Valvarde, Bernardo Silva
- Wingers and attacking midfielder: Yan Diomande, Jude Bellingham, Vinicius Jr.
- Forward: Kylian Mbappe
When is Real Madrid vs Real Sociedad?
- When: Wednesday, Aug. 26
- Where: Santiago Bernabeu Stadium (Madrid, Spain)
- Time: 3 p.m. ET
- Channel/streaming: Watch LIVE on ESPN+, ESPN Deportes
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Real Madrid projected lineup vs. Real Sociedad: Is Yan Diomande ready for Bernabeu bow?
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