Real Madrid News
Official: Real Madrid starting lineup against Osasuna | Copa del Rey final
Real Madrid have the chance to win their first Copa del Rey title in nine years when they take on Osasuna in the final tonight. They defeated Barcelona in the semi-finals over two legs, beating them 4-1.
Carlo Ancelotti has selected his best possible XI for the game, coming off a 2-0 loss against Real Sociedad in the league. Thibaut Courtois starts in goal, guarded by a back-four consisting of Eder Militao and David Alaba.
Daniel Carvajal starts as the right-back, with Eduardo Camavinga on the left side of the defence.
Aurelien Tchouameni gets the nod to start as the defensive midfielder, with Toni Kroos and Federico Valverde acting as the central midfielders. Luka Modric starts on the bench, having recovered from his hamstring injury.
Madrid have gone all guns blazing in attack, with Rodrygo as the right-winger. His compatriot, Vincius Jr is on the left-wing, with Karim Benzema spearheading the XI.
Confirmed Madrid XI: Courtois; Carvajal, Militao, Alaba, Camavinga; Valverde, Tchouameni, Kroos; Rodrygo, Benzema, Vinicius
Real Madrid News
Mbappe hits out at claims on his unhappiness at Real Madrid: ‘Angry at my great aunt too’
Kylian Mbappe has been in the news for a plethora of reasons in recent weeks, starting with his injury and surprise vacation. Beyond that, the Ballon d’Or saga has kept him in the spotlight for a reasonable while now.
The Frenchman, after all, has not held back in speaking out about why he deserves to win the prestigious individual award, and while it is perfectly okay to campaign for the award, it is something that has not usually been done in the past.
In terms of his goalscoring numbers, there is no doubt that Mbappe should be a frontrunner for the award. His lack of a single trophy for both club and country, however, works against his chances.
Mbappe’s sarcastic reply to baseless rumours
Earlier today, there were reports of Kylian Mbappe being angry with Zinedine Zidane and Real Madrid for not campaigning for him to win the Ballon d’Or this year.
The rumours, needless to say, portrayed the player in a very bad light and made it seem like the club not making public gestures to acknowledge and back his campaign affected him personally.
Now, the player has himself come out to lash out at the journalists, albeit in a sarcastic manner. Commenting directly below the post making the claim via Fabrizio Romano, the player wrote,
“Yes, yes, I even got angry with my great aunt too.”
Mbappe’s ability to deal with such reports with a tinge of humour, needless to say, is impressive and it can only be good for his image that he spoke out and cut off the news at its roots.
Set to return
There has been significant concern around Mbappe’s fitness in recent weeks after the player left the French national team with an injury after their first game.
The initial diagnosis appeared worrying, but it soon came to light that the player had avoided a major setback by a hair’s breadth.
Now, there is increasing hope that the Frenchman will be back for Real Madrid’s first game after the break against Villarreal, possibly even as a starter.
Needless to say, that comes as a massive positive for Jose Mourinho’s plans ahead of a crucial stretch of the season.
