Vinicius Junior will return to the Real Madrid starting lineup for the UEFA Champions League clash with Red Bull Salzburg at the Santiago Bernabeu on Wednesday.
Real Madrid will aim to get closer to the automatic qualification spots in the UEFA Champions League when they welcome Red Bull Salzburg to the Santiago Bernabeu on Wednesday night. And Carlo Ancelotti has greeted a mixed bag of updates on the team news front ahead of his side’s latest fixture.
Vinicius Junior is available after missing the league game against UD Las Palmas this past weekend due to suspension. However, Lucas Vazquez missed Wednesday’s match against Red Bull Salzburg due to a one-match ban. Meanwhile, Aurelien Tchouameni has shrugged off a knock to be available for the matchday squad to take on the Austrian outfit.
However, Dani Carvajal (knee), Eder Militao (knee), and Eduardo Camavinga (hamstring) remain on the sidelines. Meanwhile, during his pre-match press conference, Ancelotti did not provide a fitness update on any player but discussed his team’s “level”. The Italian tactician also spoke about Kylian Mbappe’s progress in the last few weeks.
The Real Madrid manager said, “We have to separate. Offensively we are performing very well in terms of goals and play. Defensively we have to improve a lot. That will be the key to success this season. If we can improve defensively we’ll fight until the end in all competitions.”
Ancelotti said on Mbappe, “At the beginning, he swapped positions a bit more with Vini, because he also likes to play on the inside. Now they do it a bit less. We did it to fix Bellingham’s position, helping him to be more offensive, not to try to improve Mbappé’s performance.”
“Now it’s going well and we have to keep it that way. If you play inside you don’t need to touch the ball so many times to score. He’s done it many times because his best quality is gaining space from his marker and the speed he has.”
Mbappe will lead the line for Real Madrid against Red Bull Salzburg, with the home side lining up in a 4-2-3-1 formation. Vinicius Junior will return to the starting lineup and replace Brahim Diaz. Rodrygo and Jude Bellingham will complete the numbers in the final third.
As for the midfield unit, Luka Modric should pair up with Dani Ceballos in the double pivot, with Aurelien Tchouameni being a backup option on the bench. Finally, the backline should see two changes, with Federico Valverde and Ferland Mendy replacing Lucas Vazquez and Fran Garcia as the full-backs. The duo will accompany Raul Asencio and Antonio Rudiger in the defensive quartet. Finally, Thibaut Courtois is an automatic pick between the sticks.
Predicted Real Madrid XI: Courtois; Valverde, Asencio, Rudiger, Mendy; Modric, Ceballos; Rodrygo, Bellingham, Vinicius Junior; Mbappe
