Revisit Osasuna with Courtois and Vinicius’ body armor as a fuse, but without Kroos’ trigger, Benzema’s ammunition and with one eye on Anfield
The roulette wheels of the League and the Champions League are spinning again and Real Madrid are clear about it: in the coming days it will be their turn to bet everything on red. The visit to Osasuna, a team that has earned the right to dream big, opens a transcendental stretch of the track in which the whites must gain ground against Barça to keep alive their chances to rehabilitate the scepter in the national championship and they will return to meet an old acquaintance who also bears the color of blood in his fetish tournament. The same that the Chamartin team will have to shed in the coming weeks to achieve goals etched on fire that, however, hang by a thread.
«You have to have a good attitude, commitment, desire and the illusion of winning. It’s an important moment of the season, the team is in a good dynamic and we have to keep it up,” explained Carlo Ancelotti a day before his team set foot on El Sadar. A field of sores in which Real Madrid have only managed to take three points in four of their last ten visits to the League, but cannot afford to fail this time, even if the upcoming trip to Liverpool be tempted to hold cards.
“The aim is to reduce the gap to Barcelona. The calendar is very demanding and with important matches. Either party can improve or worsen the situation. That’s football. It can go from good to bad very quickly. If the dynamics are right, you have to do everything you can to keep it going,” Ancelotti said in the middle of a week marked by the irreparable damage that “Barçagate” has done to Spanish football. competition is not good, sport should always be clean and we should all work to make it that way,” the transalpine emphasized.
Wednesday’s win against Elche had medicinal effects for a side already reborn from the Club World Cup, but had to go through a spa to get in shape for the brutal war ahead. Courtois completed his recovery by resting against the Elche side and will once again be under the sticks in his bulletproof vest. Vinicius also returns, once the game suspension he was dragging due to the accumulation of yellow cards has expired. The carioca will again act as a fuse.
But the whites also have reason to mourn: Kroos is still absent and Benzema, again on the edge, remains in bed in Madrid hoping to be at his best at Anfield next Tuesday. Without the German metronome or the French gunboat, Real Madrid will be entrusted to Modric’s trigger, who is exposed to missing next weekend’s derby with Atlético because he is on the alert, and to Rodrygo’s ammunition to try to take the fortress over to give up an opponent who managed to disarm him in the first round.
On matchday seven of the League, Osasuna faced a Real Madrid who led the championship with complete wins in the first six rounds and went off at half-time before the game against the rojillos thanks to a goal from Vinicius. But Kike García equalized the game with a header after the dressing room, Sergio Herrera saved a penalty from Benzema in the final stretch and from the Bernabéu they flew two points that helped Barça take the baton from the reigning champions.
Since then, Osasuna has not left the noble part of the table and has reached the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey for the sixth time in its history. However, the demand for the calendar is also starting to take its toll. The rojillos have collected only 7 of the last 24 points in the fight and receive Real Madrid with two weight loss due to suspension, Juan Cruz and Chimy Ávila, and another two less sensitive due to injury: Nacho Vidal and Rubén Peña. The best news for Jagoba Arrasate is the return of Aimar Oroz, a Tajonar jewel who was on Real Madrid’s radar five years ago. The Berriatúa coach also recovers Abde, absent from Valladolid due to suspension, and David García, who also could not be in Zorrilla due to gastroenteritis.
Source: La Verdad
I am Shawn Partain, a journalist and content creator working for the Today Times Live. I specialize in sports journalism, writing articles that cover major sporting events and news stories. With a passion for storytelling and an eye for detail, I strive to be accurate and insightful in my work.
