Lunes, 3 de marzo 2025, 17:40
Real Madrid’s Santiago Bernabéu is set to raise the curtain on a fiery Champions League last-16 tie, pitting two teams against each other with contrasting spirits. Real Madrid, downcast after their league disconnect experienced last Saturday at the Benito Villamarín, hit by injuries and on yellow alert, is calling upon its love affair with the top continental competition to face an Atlético team brimming with confidence against its European nemesis.
Led by a Spider multiplying its stings, equipped with a powerful squad depth, and boasting the best defense among the top five leagues, the team managed by Diego Pablo Simeone feels it has a golden opportunity to exact revenge for past grievances at the hands of its hated neighbor. However, it also fears the infinite capacity to rise from the ashes that has forged Real Madrid’s legend, a team that will reach the milestone of 500 matches in its favorite competition this Tuesday and has another chance to rise from the canvas with grandeur.
After losing ground in the league race by squandering ten points in the last five rounds, Carlo Ancelotti’s squad needs a catharsis against Atlético to restore the morale of a troop that the Italian had to reprimand again due to the apathy shown against Betis. With the score in their favor shortly after the start of the match, the Whites disconnected thinking about the Euroderby and suffered a painful defeat that has reactivated the crisis cabinet in Chamartín.
The 27 ball losses in the first half mentioned by Ancelotti and the 18 shots by the verdiblanco block throughout the match, the third-highest number suffered by Real Madrid so far this season, forced the Reggiolo native to raise his voice, warning his inattentive pupils that without “commitment and attitude,” disaster will be looming against Atlético. Carletto trusts that the scolding will serve to awaken a team facing the clash against the red-and-white squad with five players who would miss next week’s dispute at the Metropolitano if they see yellow this Tuesday – Rüdiger, Tchouaméni, Camavinga, Modric, and Endrick, in addition to the coach himself – without the suspended Bellingham and with many uncertainties in the lineup.
The main enigma concerns Valverde, a key player in Carletto’s setup, who pays the price for the labor overexploitation to which the coach has had to subject him due to the demands of an unbalanced and injury-ridden squad. The Uruguayan utility player injured his hamstring half a month ago against Osasuna, forced himself to be present in the return leg of the playoff against Manchester City, and has remained sidelined since then. He has not donned the kit for two weeks, but the duel against Atlético becomes a matter of state for Real Madrid, and his presence seems essential, so he is likely to take a risk. It remains to be seen whether he will do so as an orthopedic right-back or as a midfielder, the latter area lacking both the irreplaceable Bellingham and the productive Ceballos, with Camavinga and Brahim in cotton wool. There are no doubts in the forward line, occupied by Rodrygo, Mbappé, and Vinicius, three stars who dimmed against Betis but have shone brightly in the Champions League so far.
An Uncomfortable Favoritism
Dim their brilliance is the goal of an Atlético that has only bowed in one of its last seven derbies against Real Madrid and is invested with a favorite status by almost all numbers, a status not embraced by Cholo. The red-and-whites have accumulated 18 clean sheets across all competitions, scored 28 goals from substitutes, and have Julián Álvarez as one of Europe’s most in-form ‘killers’. The Argentine has needed only 42 shots on target to score 21 goals, while Mbappé has required 78 shots to tally his 28 goals.
The gunpowder exuded by the former City player is the main jewel in the crown of an Atlético also smiled upon by the infirmary. Azpilicueta and Koke are the only absentees in the red-and-white camp, which has Giménez and Correa on the brink of suspension. The Uruguayan will return to a defensive axis from which Le Normand may exit, while the Argentine will await his turn as a luxury substitute. Llorente is set for the left-back position, while Gallagher or Lino will complete a midfield crucial to keeping the tie alive heading to the Metropolitano.
-Probable Line-ups:
Real Madrid: Courtois, Valverde, Rüdiger, Asencio, Mendy, Tchouaméni, Camavinga, Rodrygo, Brahim, Vinicius, and Mbappé.
Atlético: Oblak, Llorente, Giménez, Lenglet, Galán, Giuliano, De Paul, Barrios, Gallagher, Griezmann, and Julián Álvarez.
Referee: Clément Turpin (France).
Time: 21:00 h.
Stadium: Santiago Bernabéu.
TV: Movistar Liga de Campeones.
