Real Madrid have been in good form of late, especially in the UEFA Champions League, where they have already put a firm foot in the Semi-final stage having beaten Italian giants Juventus in the first leg of their quarter-final clash in Turin. The next leg is at Santiago Bernabeu and it is expected that the European champions will go through in gallant style to the next round.
The reigning La Liga champions, however, have lost all hopes of hanging onto their domestic title this season with arch-rivals Barcelona having taken an almost unassailable lead at the top of the table. The gap between the two teams being that of 13 points, the Galacticos are now looking to finish as high as possible in the competition this season by dethroning the current second placed team, Atletico Madrid, who are, in fact, their opponents for the next match, which will be played at the Santiago Bernabeu.
The Madrid derby is one of the spectacles of Spanish football, as two of the best teams in Europe will clash against each other to establish their dominance over the other. This time though, it is not only the prestige that will count, as both Los Blancos and Los Colchoneros will be playing for points as well. While Real Madrid, who are trailing Atleti by 4 points, will look to close the gap, the Red and Whites of Madrid will look to make it as hard as possible for their opponents and get a firm grip on the second position in the league table.
Real Madrid, who are currently third in La Liga, are looking to revive after an abysmal start to the campaign and have successfully done so in their recent outings. They don’t have any major injuries barring one, that of Nacho, and will be coming out all guns blazing in their match in the match against Atletico Madrid.
Predicted Formation: 4-4-2
Zinedine Zidane has been marshalling his troupes pretty well in the later stages of the season and has implemented the two-man attacking system to good effect. Increasing number of bodies in the midfield has helped them in keeping possession of the ball and a well-organised defence has kept the opposition attackers at bay.
Defence
Keylor Navas is expected to be the man in the goal for the Galacticos, guarded by the likes of Sergio Ramos and Raphael Varane. The right and left ends of the backline is expected to be covered by the Dani Carvajal and Marcelo, who might be replaced by Theo Hernandez in the later stages of the match, keeping in mind the midweek clash against Juventus.
Midfield
While Toni Kroos and Casemiro will be taking the responsibility to keep the midfield machine running, Isco and Marco Asensio might be the ones to be deployed on either flank by Zidane to get the ball into the attacking third and should the occasion arise, take a few shots on the goal as well.
Attack
Karim Benzema, alongside the team talisman Cristiano Ronaldo, is expected to lead the line for the Galacticos. The Portuguese ace is looking in mercurial form of late and will be looking to make the most of the defensive lapses, if any, in the Atleti defence and score goals to lead his side to a very important victory.
