Gareth Bale is unlikely to be afforded a place in the starting eleven for Real Madrid as they prepare for the Madrid derby away at Atletico Madrid.
Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid will renew rivalries at the Wanda Metropolitano on Saturday, with second place in Los Blancos‘ sights. A win on Saturday will see them topple their local rivals. But, Gareth Bale is likely to be seeing the match from the bench, with the forward not likely to make the starting eleven.
The goalkeeping spot has now been settled, with Thibaut Courtois cementing his place as the first-choice custodian under Santiago Solari. The back four will see a few changes. Raphael Varane and Dani Carvajal are back after serving their respective suspensions and are likely to slot straight into the lineup.
One major but expected change will be Sergio Reguilon likely coming into the starting eleven for Marcelo, who had a mare of an outing against Barcelona in Copa del Rey. It is a big night for the youngster, who has stepped up on almost every occasion thus far. Sergio Ramos will round out the back four.
In midfield, Casemiro should return as the ball-sweeping Anchor Man, with Luka Modric and Toni Kroos set to complete the three-man midfield.
Santiago Solari touched on the fitness of Isco during his pre-match conference while also hinting that Gareth Bale and Marco Asensio are unlikely to make the starting eleven on Saturday.
Solari said,“ Isco left training with some discomfort in his back and we’ll assess him this evening. They’re on the way back and improving.A professional footballer’s job is to train at 100% to be ready to do his bit for the team. They’ve [Bale and Asensio] only recently returned from injury and we all know what they can contribute. We’re thrilled to have them back with the group and training with such commitment”
Lucas Vazquez is in form and his Copa del Rey performance should ensure a start for him in attack. Vinicius Jr. has been the brightest spark under Santiago Solari and should continue on the left. Karim Benzema should lead the Real Madrid frontline against Atletico Madrid on Saturday.
