Real Madrid get a full morale from an Atlético who can avenge their recent cup exit by eliminating the whites from the league contention
The Santiago Bernabéu will wear their best this Saturday to host a derby that oscillates between the possibility of locals fleeing and the possibility of the visiting side consuming checkmate. With a tank full of morale after Tuesday’s away win against Liverpool in the first leg of the Champions League round of 16, Real Madrid resume the pulse they keep with Barça for the League and receive an Atlético team that has seven years collected without attacking the merengue fortress, but who has the chance to avenge the recent elimination he suffered in the Copa del Rey at the hands of the hated neighbour, waking him from the dream to win the championship they still always keep alive in Concha Espina to revalidate .
With eight points behind the leader, Real Madrid could not make a single mistake. The lazy stage he completed just before the World Cup break in Qatar and a particularly steep climb in January left Carlo Ancelotti’s team in trouble, but they have found cause for optimism.
The injection of confidence that his coup d’état has brought to the Champions League, together with the new disaster committed by the Catalans in the Europa League, fuels Chamartín’s hopes that a wind change will take place that will bring the whites into the tournament regularity and contains the hosts of Xavi Hernandez.
But to avoid the hunt for Barça definitively becoming the realm of science fiction, Real Madrid must continue to add three by three as it waits for a culé setback that will allow it to gain ground before visiting in mid-March at the Camp Nou.
“We’re going to give all our energy to try to win the league,” said Carlo Ancelotti ahead of a match his team arrived “with a good feeling and good dynamics”. Wins over Elche and Osasuna have bolstered a block that has kept a clean sheet in the three league games it has played at the Santiago Bernabéu since the World Cup break. In fact, the Whites have conceded just one goal in the last six games and have gone 319 days without succumbing in their den between all competitions.
Some records encouraging a team that saw Alaba and Rodrygo injured at Anfield, but which Tchouaméni recover in the face of a clash in which Vinicius, in the spotlight of the red and white parish, will once again monopolize much of the attention, after the new exhibition game he completed against Liverpool. “Players as talented as him usually stop in the game to recover. It’s rare to see a player like that giving his all for 90 minutes,” said Ancelotti. The Italian, who confirmed Nacho as a loanee on the left, will once again pass the baton to Modric and Kroos as he always does at big events, including that cup match from a month ago that still stings the mattresses.
The 3-1 draw at the end of extra time that resolved the quarter-final and especially the failure to exclude Ceballos in the 70th minute of a match in which Atlético then won 0-1 led to a harsh statement from Miguel Ángel Gil Marín. on the Soto Grado arbitration. Simeone chose instead to ease the pressure on Gil Manzano, a referee particularly disliked by the rojiblancos who will face a litmus test for the establishment at the Bernabéu on particularly tough days. “He’s a barbaric umpire,” said Cholo.
The Argentine is also confident in giving continuity to his team’s good dynamics, which have clearly improved since returning from the competition and are two points behind Real Sociedad in third place. “We came back with Koke in the middle and we are coming through the game better. Defensively we suffered a bit more, but we are looking for that balance,” explains Simeone, who will equal Luis Aragonés at the Bernabéu as the coach with the most official appearances at the head of the mattress ship.
The latest tests carried out this week suggest that Barrios and Saúl will find their way into midfield, where Atlético have De Paul and Kondogbia absent due to injury. Marcos Llorente could be the wild card that makes his team more compact in the withdrawal without losing the ability to stretch.
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.
