COPA DEL REY
Confirmed Real Madrid starting lineup against Atlético in the Copa del Rey
Carlo Ancelotti’s side go into the cup derby on the back of winning the first domestic trophy of the season, the Spanish Super Cup.
Real Madrid have had little time to enjoy their Clásico victory over Barcelona in the 2024 Spanish Super Cup final, with a Copa del Rey derby against Atlético Madrid taking place just four days layer. The round-of-16 clash will be a one-off tie at the Metropolitano, where Diego Simeone’s side will be out for revenge after their extra-time defeat to Los Blancos in the Super Cup semi-finals in Saudi Arabia a little over a week ago.
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Rodrygo “available” despite training absenece
Carlo Ancelotti has no new injury worries to contend with following the trip to Riyadh, although the Italian did admit some players were suffering from tiredness. “Taking fatigue into account, I’ll play the strongest available team,” he said in his pre-match press conference. Rodrygo had looked set to be a doubt after failing to train with the rest of the group on Wednesday, but Ancelotti explained: “He needed one more day of low intensity (training), he will be available to play.”
The only absentees, therefore, are long-term injury victims Thibaut Courtois, Eder Militão and David Alaba, as well as Lucas Vázquez, who will return to full training on Friday, the manager revealed.
Lunin in goal, Kroos or Modric in midfield?
Few changes have been made to the team that defeated Atleti and Barcelona in the Spanish Super Cup. In the run-up to the final of that tournament, Ancelotti himself confirmed goalkeeper Andriy Lunin would keep his place in the team and start the Copa del Rey derby.
The only outfield change Ancelotti made to his two starting lineups in Saudi Arabia was switching from Luka Modric for the semi-final to Toni Kroos for the final. The Italian also have decide to keep Rodrygo in the XI, with Brahim Díaz waiting in the wings.
Confirmed Real Madrid XI against Atlético in the Copa del Rey
Ancelotti’s Madrid are to line up as follows:
Lunin; Carvajal, Rüdiger, Nacho, Mendy; Valverde, Camavinga, Modric, Bellingham; Rodrygo, Vinicius.
Copa del Rey regulations allow 11 substitutes to be named (one fewer than in LaLiga). Kepa, Diego Piñeiro, Vinicius Tobias, Fran García, Mario Martín, Aurelien Tchouaméni, Dani Ceballos, Arda Güler and Joselu make up the list of players who have been called up for the game.
What happens if the game is tied after 90 minutes?
The tie will be settled on the night and if the scores are tied after 90 minutes, the game will be decided in extra time (two periods of 15 minutes), during which Ancelotti and Simeone will be permitted to make a sixth substitution in additional window. If the teams still can’t be separated, a penalty shootout will follow.
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