90 minutes away from a place in the Champions League quarter-finals, Real Madrid welcome RB Leipzig to Santiago Bernabeu for the second leg of their last-16 tie on Wednesday night.
Los Blancos edged the Bundesliga side 1-0 in the first leg last month, where Brahim Diaz struck the only goal at the Red Bull Arena. Since then, they have picked up only five points in three La Liga games. However, Carlo Ancelotti’s men still remain at the summit of the La Liga despite the controversial 2-2 draw with Valencia at the Mestalla on Saturday evening.
The Spanish giants will be aiming to bounce back to winning ways against RB Leipzig, who head to Madrid off the back of a 4-1 league win over Bochum.
Real Madrid Team News
Eder Militao and Thibaut Courtois—two ACL victims—have spent the whole season on the sidelines, but Carlo Ancelotti revealed that they are on track to make their comeback in mid-April. In contrast, David Alaba—another Real Madrid player to rupture his ACL this season—is not as far as along in his recovery and will not be back until next campaign.
Elsewhere, Jude Bellingham was sent off in the final moments of Saturday’s draw with Valencia, but the midfielder’s suspension only pertains to the domestic competitions.
Goalkeeper
Andriy Lunin has acted well as a deputy for the injured Thibaut Courtois and deserves to retain his place in goal against RB Leipzig. He will be seeking to keep a clean sheet in midweek and guide his team to the Champions League quarter-finals.
Defence
Carlo Ancelotti will stick to a 4-3-1-2 system, with Ferland Mendy, Antonio Rudiger, Aurelien Tchouameni and Dani Carvajal featuring in defence in the Real Madrid lineup.
Rudiger should line up alongside Tchouameni in central defence, with Carvajal and Mendy providing support from full-back positions in the Real Madrid lineup. The hosts’ defensive quartet must produce their best to keep an attacking Leipzig side at bay.
Midfield
Toni Kroos remains the favourite to sit at the base of the Madrid midfield. The German’s positioning and ability to progress the ball from deep will be key for the hosts against Leipzig.
Federico Valverde and Eduardo Camavinga should join Kroos in the engine room in the Real Madrid lineup, providing thrust and dynamism to the home side. The trio must function well to dominate the German side in the middle of the park.
Brahim Diaz and Luka Modric could be involved at some point in the game.
Attack
Jude Bellingham’s return to the side from injury on Saturday was a big boost. The England international will try to get into pockets of spaces in between Leipzig’s midfield and release pacey Brazilian duo Vinicius Jr. and Rodrygo Goes during the transitions.
Fresh from a brace against Valencia, Vinicius will enter this game high on confidence. His explosive pace and dribbling skills along with Rodrygo’s movement could cause all kinds of problems for Leipzig’s defence.
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