Deportivo Hosts Real Madrid in Teresa Herrera Trophy, Both Sides Unbeaten

Riazor is dressing up again. This Wednesday, August 12, Deportivo hosts Real Madrid in a friendly that serves as the last major test before the official season kicks off, as part of the traditional Teresa Herrera Trophy. For the Galicians, who return to the top flight this year after a stint in the second division, it's the test they'll use to measure just how far this team can go. For Jose Mourinho's Real Madrid, it's simply another friendly to keep rotating pieces before the games that actually matter begin.

Kickoff is set for 4:00 p.m. in Argentina and Uruguay, 3:00 p.m. in Chile and 2:00 p.m. in Colombia, Peru and Ecuador, with the match airing on Real Madrid TV.

There's plenty to watch for in the squad list. Vinicius Junior, who just signed his contract renewal with the club and remains constant headline material, will be among those called up, alongside names like Federico Valverde and Bernardo Silva. Mourinho's plan seems clear: keep giving minutes to his key pieces while not neglecting the group's physical conditioning.

On the other side, Deportivo also has reasons for optimism. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is the main offensive reference for a team looking to prove it can hold its own against anyone in its return to the top division, with Angelino another name to watch in the Coruna side's setup.

How the two teams arrive

Both sides go into the match unbeaten in preseason, which adds a bit of extra spice to the meeting even though it's just a friendly. Real Madrid comes off a 2-1 win over Ferencvaros, after a 2-2 draw with Fiorentina and a 4-1 rout of Leganes. Deportivo, for its part, arrives having beaten Genoa 1-0, following draws of 1-1 with Fiorentina and 2-2 against St. Pauli.

The recent head-to-head record, however, clearly favors the Whites. The last meeting came on January 21, 2018, at the Santiago Bernabeu, when Real Madrid thrashed Deportivo 7-1 in La Liga. That day, Gareth Bale, Cristiano Ronaldo and Nacho Fernandez each scored twice, Luka Modric added another goal, and Adrian Lopez was the only player to get one back for the Galicians.

That result, of course, belongs to another era and another context: neither squad today resembles the one that took the field in Madrid that afternoon. This Wednesday, the goal isn't so much the result as it is seeing minutes, star power and new signings before the official calendar gets serious on both sides.