Real Madrid entertain Deportivo La Coruna at the Santiago Bernabeu on Saturday evening looking to get back to winning ways after their defeat in the derby last weekend.
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That setback - Madrid were thrashed 4-0 at Atletico – has cut Real’s lead over arch-rivals Barcelona at the top of the table to just one point, with the champions now only four points adrift in third.
Carlo Ancelotti has demanded a reaction from his players when they take on mid-table Depor, with the Italian blaming his side’s recent poor form on a drop in "intensity, attitude and concentration" since they won the Club World Cup in December.
The European champions finished 2014 on a record-breaking 22-match winning streak, but in 10 games since Christmas they have suffered a friendly defeat to AC Milan, lost to Valencia in La Liga and seen the defence of their Copa del Rey title ended by Atletico.
The fall-out from that humiliation has been intense, from club president Florentino Perez holding a supposed 'crisis' meeting with the players to speculation that Cristiano Ronaldo - who has been lambasted for his performance in the derby and for his 30th birthday celebrations just hours after the final whistle - could be sold.
However, the players now have a chance to answer their critics, and Ancelotti is expecting a good response at what he believes could be crucial stage of their season.
"It's been a frustrating week,” he said in his pre-match press conference. “This is a motivation for the players and we expect to see a reaction in tomorrow's match.
"Since the final of the Club World Cup, our intensity, attitude and concentration has lowered a bit. I don't know if that's normal, but that's what has happened.
"We have dipped a bit but we still have time to bounce back. I have faith that that will happen. This squad fills me with confidence and I'm sure that we will be competitive yet again.
"We are in a key week. What happens in these days is going to help determine what could happen in the future."
The home side will be without defender Sergio Ramos and midfielders James Rodriguez and Luka Modric through injury, although centre-back Pepe could feature after returning to training on Friday.
Watch Real v Deportivo on Sky Sports 5HD at 5pm on Saturday.