Real Madrid News
Ancelotti wants Real Madrid stars to consider El Clasico against Barcelona as a ‘final’
Real Madrid are gearing up for one of their most important matches of the season as they play hosts to FC Barcelona, in the revered El Clasico.
The Whites are heading into this game level on points with their arch-rivals, meaning a win this weekend could see them overtake the Catalans at the top of the table.
Barça are coming into this game on the back of a draw with Inter Milan that more or less confirms their elimination from the UEFA Champions League group stages, for the second consecutive season.
In light of their poor result, Real Madrid head coach Carlo Ancelotti is hoping his team can hurt Barcelona even more by securing win in this season’s first El Clasico.
According to Tomas Roncero on El Chiringuito, talking to the players before yesterday’s training session, Ancelotti said: “Barça are dead right now and the only way they can revive is by beating us on Sunday. We cannot let them win again. This is a final.”
Following a run of five successive defeats from 2020 to 2022, Barcelona have fared well against Real Madrid under the leadership of Xavi Hernandez.
Earlier this year, Barça had beaten Los Blancos 4-0 in La Liga. The Catalans continued their momentum by beating their arch-rivals in a pre-season friendly in the US, earlier this summer. They won the game 1-0, with new signing Raphinha scoring the winner.
However, a lot has happened since and with Barcelona undergoing a crisis, both from a sporting and a financial perspective, they are facing an uphill task of getting back to winning ways.
Real Madrid will hope to make good use of their opponent’s lack of momentum and seal all three points this weekend.
The current edition of the Real Madrid squad is full of young talents, who have shown remarkable potential in recent years.
Arda Guler is among the young players looking to make a mark in European football in the years to come.
The young Turk joined Real Madrid earlier this summer, rejecting many other European giants in the process.
Toni Kroos mentoring Guler at Real Madrid
Guler has not enjoyed the best of starts to his life at Santiago Bernabeu, as he is spending a brief time on the sidelines due to an injury.
However, Guler has not stopped working on his characteristics, as he looks to kickstart his Real Madrid career on a positive note.
To that end, the former Fenerbahce starlet is receiving some key support from one of Real Madrid’s midfield pillars in the form of Toni Kroos.
This is according to MARCA, which suggests that the German international is mentoring Guler in his early days at Santiago Bernabeu.
Kroos: huge ‘sponsor’ of Guler
The report highlights how Toni Kroos is a huge admirer of Arda Guler. The German had even heaped praise on the youngster from Turkey when he joined the club earlier in the summer.
Guler, therefore, is closely training with Kroos, whose years of experience, composure, and knowledge of football, could help the youngster grow at Santiago Bernabeu.
This fits in well with Carlo Ancelotti’s vision at Real Madrid, as the Italian boss wants youngsters to have room to grow, especially with guidance from some of the older guards in the team.
It is one of the key reasons Real Madrid wanted to stick to Kroos and Luka Modric, despite bringing in Arda Guler and Jude Bellingham in the summer.
Guler, therefore, has the stage set for him to start his Real Madrid career on a strong note. After impressing in training, the next step for the youngster is to make a promising debut, which is just around the corner.
