Leyma Coruña-Real Madrid: unprecedented league opener
The reigning champions visit A Coruña Coliseum for the first time to face a team making its debut in the ACB (6:30pm CET).
Real Madrid make their 2024/25 league debut on the court of Leyma Coruña in a match that has never been played before in the ACB. Last season's champions take on a newly promoted side making their debut in the competition. Chus Mateo's team will be looking to get off to a good start and open their season with an away win.
The A Coruña Coliseum, with a capacity of 9,3000 spectators, will be abuzz this afternoon with their ACB debut and Real Madrid's visit. It will be a demanding start. Our team is getting into a positive dynamic after a pre-season with three victories (Benfica, Monaco and Varese) and a Supercup in which they beat Barcelona convincingly in the semi-finals only for a weak first quarter in the final to deny them the title. The A Coruña side, revamped following their promotion, will have the enthusiasm and motivation of a rookie team to compete against us.
The match is expected to be a physical one. Diego Epifanio's team have put together an experienced squad, with players who are well known in the ACB such as Lima, Huskic, Burjanadze and Scrubb, as well as ex-Madrid player Thompkins. The power forward, who is doubtful for today, is one of the 10 foreigners with the most games for Real Madrid. They also have a lot of rotation on the inside with a 7-footer, namely Diagne. On the outside, Taylor, Font and L.J. Figueroa are expected to be the key players.
Llull
Madrid starts this season with four new faces: Feliz, Rathan-Mayes, Garuba and Ibaka. All four showed what they can bring to the team in the Supercopa led by Llull, Campazzo, Tavares and company. The captain (609) is in his 19th season at our club and is close to overtaking Felipe Reyes (619) as the Madrid player with the most games in the ACB.