Real Madrid News
Carlo Ancelotti will use a ‘very offensive team’ against Barcelona – report
Real Madrid will have all to play for when they visit Spotify Camp Nou for their Copa del Rey semi-final second clash against Barcelona tonight.
And if a report from journalist Jose Luiz Sanchez, via El Chiringuito TV, is to be believed, Carlo Ancelotti will use a very offensive team against the Blaugrana.
It must be remembered that Ancelotti decided to rest several key players during his side’s 6-0 win over Elche. Lucas Vazquez and Eduardo Camavinga were used as full-backs while Marco Asensio formed an attacking trio with Vinicius Jr and Rodrygo behind Karim Benzema.
In turn, the likes of Dani Carvajal, Federico Valverde, and Luka Modric remained unused substitutes and now they are ready to roar, and are expected to return to the starting XI against Barcelona tonight.
However, with Ferland Mendy out, it remains to be seen which player will operate as the left-back. Given that both Nacho and Antonio Rudiger are back and available for selection, the decision rests with Ancelotti to decide on the formation of the backline.
If the Italian chooses to go with Rudiger, David Alaba might move to left but if the German is kept on the bench, Alaba might continue as a centre-back while Nacho can be deployed on the left.
As far as Modric is concerned, we expect him to start and this might force Toni Kroos to make his way to the bench. Fresh blood in the midfield means more tenacity and more energy.
Given the magnitude of the fixture and the fact that Barcelona have won each of the last three Clasicos, Ancelotti is expected to revert to his usual 4-3-3 setup after using a 4-2-3-1 formation against Elche.
This time around, he will want Vinicius Jr to have more authority as Barcelona manager Xavi will once again look to minimize the Brazilian’s threat by using Ronald Araujo on right.
According to AS, Real Madrid have sent a three-year contract offer with improved wages to Dani Ceballos and trust that the midfielder will continue at the club.
Ceballos is the last among the seven Los Blancos’ stars who entered the 2022/23 season with an expiring contract whose future is yet to be resolved.
Mariano Diaz, Marco Asensio, and Karim Benzema have all left Real Madrid while Toni Kroos, Luka Modric, and Nacho Fernandez are all set to continue at the Santiago Bernabeu for one more year.
As such, Ceballos remains the only player whose future remains unclear at this point.
The 26-year-old Spanish international has shown that he can offer value to the team and the club and manager Carlo Ancelotti are understood to ‘love’ him and want to retain his services.
Fans, too, made their feelings about the midfielder very clear this past weekend when Real Madrid played Athletic Club, as they chanted ‘Ceballos, stay!’
The Merengues have sent in a three-year proposal to the former Real Betis ace which includes an improvement in his wages. As such, the club expect him to pen the deal and continue at the Santiago Bernabeu.
However, Ceballos is yet to make a decision as he is weighing up the fact that he will have to compete for a place with six other midfielders.
Indeed, Real Madrid already have Kroos, Modric, Federico Valverde, Eduardo Camavinga, and Aurelien Tchouameni as competition for Ceballos. Now, they will also add Jude Bellingham to the roster, further amping up the battle for places.
Ceballos has two more offers apart from the one from Real Madrid – one from Spain and Italy each, although his former club Real Betis have not sent a proposal yet.
With the season over and less than three weeks left on his contract, it remains to be seen what the Real Madrid ace decides.
