Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti admitted earlier in the week that success this season required two victories against Barcelona in the Copa del Rey -final and in La Liga, and the first of those tasks is only three days away. The Italian coach has two days to complete his thinking during his starting line-up.
That decision was made a little easier on Wednesday evening, albeit in unpleasant circumstances. Both David Alaba and Eduardo Camavinga left the field with injuries, and Ancelotti confirmed that it was unlikely that they would be back for their journey to Seville. Both would have been candidates for the left place, while Camavinga could also have worked in midfield.
According to Marca, Ferland Mendy is still not excluded from a return of an injury, and he will be in the team, but there are doubts about his match sharpness, understandably, after a month out. Ancelotti has to exclude it that he returns to their information, but Diario as a statement that left back is one of the places that has been decided: Fran Garcia will start there.
One of the nine players who have assured their place in the starting XI, alongside Thibaut Courtois, Raul Asencio, Antonio Rudiger, Aurelien Tchouameni, Fede Valverde, Jude Bellingham, Vinicius Junior and Kylian Mbappe. That lets four players compete for two places: Rodrygo Goes, Lucas Vazquez, Dani Ceballos and Luka Modric.
It would be the first time that Ancelotti Rodrygo dropped for a big game this season, but with doubts about the balance of the side with him in it, he could be sacrificed for a fourth midfielder. That would work in favor of Modric and Ceballos, who started on Sunday with Athletic Club alongside Tchouameni. It also seems more likely that Valverde right back starts to try to stop Raphinha on the left, where Vazquez suffers from the Brazilian in their earlier meetings.