5 stats that show how Real Madrid have improved this season

#3 They are unbeaten in 13 games - the best run since 2016

The Whites haven't lost since matchday nine

Real Madrid have lost only once in the 22 games so far, and that defeat came on matchday nine. They're unbeaten in the 13 games since - the club's best run since the title-clinching season of 2016-17.

Back then, Los Blancos started the season with a bang, going the first 16 games without a loss. In the intervening years, they haven't gone more than six games without losing.

In what's turning out to be a season of redemption for Zinedine Zidane and his men, the knack of churning out positive results has held them in good stead.

Real Madrid have played the likes of Barcelona, Atletico Madrid, Valencia, Sevilla and Real Betis since the defeat to Mallorca - and haven't lose once. In fact, these five fixtures produced four clean-sheets, including the all-important Clasico.

With the second-leg to some of these sides along with trips to Bilbao and Betis still to come, the road could get murky going forward. But all pointers indicate that this Real Madrid side is hard to beat, let alone beat soundly like last year.