Real Madrid Vs Villareal: The Starting 11

The upcoming match is against Villareal at home in the Alfredo di Stefano Stadium in the La Liga match day 38. The last Real Madrid game was against Athletic Bilbao which was a okay display in the all departments but had very hard fought win.

The team rating for the match against Athletic can be found here: Team Rating

Currently Real are a recovering side, with several players unavailable due to injury but they need to win at any cost to have any chance of winning the league. 

Earlier the away game was a 1-1 Draw. And last season this fixture was a 2-1 win.

Looking at the

Injury list:

1. Carvajal
2. Lucas Vazquez
3. Ramos
4. Kroos

Suspended:

1. None

Just recovered:

1. Marcelo
2. Varane
3. Mendy

Practiced:

The rest of the players are available for selection. 

Skipped Practice:

• None

Coach Comments:

• Zidane: "We will fight until the end. We will leave everything on the pitch, down to our last drop of blood."

Other Comments:

• Nacho: "The sensations are positive. The team wins and we  keep pressing. There's one game left to try to win the League, in football you never know. Today was a game to win. Overall the team has been at a high level. In the first half we had fewer chances."

Squad Updates:

This will be the Fifty second game of the season and Real have been fairly inconsistent in the matches and the results show for themselves, they have had 30 wins, 12 Draws and 9 losses. In the last few games the performance has been poor especially in mid-field and with this recovering team it is not making the run any easier.

Villareal are a good attacking side and are good in counter attacks, so Real will need to be careful in all departments and be ready for their counters.

In the goal Courtois will start, he has been in a good form. He has supported the defense pretty well but has not received the same from the team and with so many changes due to injury in defense it is getting tough.

Mendy, Ramos, Carvajal and Lucas Vazquez are out injured. Varane is also injured but might recover in time but is not expected to start, Nacho and Militao will start. So, Odriozola and Miguel should start on the wings. Miguel, Nacho, Militao and Odriozola will start. Marcelo, Varane, Mendy and Marvin should be available as substitutes.

Modric has looked a tad slow in the last few games but he has been exceptional. Kroos has been great and should be ready to start, only problem is the covid protocol! So, Modric and Valverde should start along with Casemiro. Isco and Blanco should be available on the bench.

The forwards have been poor all season, Hazard is back but should only start as a substitute and Vinicius should start on the left and Rodrygo will start on the right. And Benzema should start upfront.  Mariano, Asensio and Hazard should start from the Bench.

As there are 5 substitutions available, ZZ should think for more changes in the second half if the score is conducive especially taking into account the team's fatigue.

The probable substitutions will be: 

Vinicius > Hazard

Modric > Isco

Casemiro >  Blanco

Rodrygo > Asensio

Odriozola > Mariano

So the formation would be 4 3 3.

The most probable kit to be used for the game will be the home kit!!!

So the final starting 11 will be:

Villareal Vs Real Madrid: The Starting 11

The upcoming match against Villareal is an away game in the La liga match day 10. Real Madrid will play their sixth away match of the season. The last Real Madrid game was against Valencia which was a disaster, this was one of the poorer performances of the team but there were sparks of good in the first half and poor refereeing added at least two goals, if not three.  

The team rating for the match against Valencia can be found here: Team Rating

With so many back to back matches, Real have no option but to win this for their form back and to keep their title chance alive by gaining some confidence back.

Last year this fixture was a 2-2 draw.

Looking at the

Injury list:

1. Ramos
2. Hazard
3. Odriozola
4. Valverde

Suspended:

1. None

Just recovered:

1. Ødegaard
2. Carvajal
3. Benzema
4. Casemiro
5. Militao
6. Varane

Practiced:

The rest of the players are available for selection. 

Skipped Practice:

• None

Coach Comments:

• To be updated

Other Comments:

• With regular right back option now available it should be easier.

Squad Updates:

This will be the Twelfth game of the season and Real have been inconsistent in their performances. Forwards are mis-firing, defence is in disarray, and mid field is getting better but still not at par with the quality they have. This game is very crucial as it is just after the international break and there are several injuries and recoveries. Madrid would want to win this at any cost.

Villareal has a good attack. So, Real will have to be very careful.

In the goal Courtois will start, he has been leaking goals in the last few games even though his form has been good. 

Mendy has to start on the left. Militao and Varane will start as the center backs. And Carvajal will start on the right. So Mendy, Militao, Varane and Carvajal should start. Defence has been in shambles for some time, they need to be more structured, hopefully with Carvajal and Mendy things will get better.

Modric has been good and should be favorite to start. Mid field has been better in the last few games but with Valverde's injury things will need to be reshuffled. Real needs to get the control back. It will be the mix of guards again. Ødegaard, Casemiro, Kroos and Modric will start. And Lucas Vazquez and Isco will start from the bench.

The forwards have been mis-firing for the second season now. Benzema has been better now but had an injury and should come off the bench. Vinicius is the only one who shows some promise and Hazard is still not available due to Covid. This situation would let Vinicius start on the left and Jovic upfront, and Rodrygo and Asensio should start on the bench providing some different flavor in the second half transitioning from 4 4 2 to 4 3 3.

As there are 5 substitutions available, ZZ should think for more rotations in the second half.

The probable substitutions will be: 

Vinicius > Asensio

Ødegaard > Rodrygo

Modric > Isco

Mendy > Marcelo

Jovic > Benzema

So the formation would be 4 4 2.

The most probable kit to be used for the Valencia game will be the third kit !!!

So the final starting 11 will be:

Real Madrid Vs Villarreal: The Starting 11

La Liga Title Prediction: CLICK HERE

The upcoming match is against Villarreal at home in the La liga match day 37. Villarreal are 5th on the leader-board and Real are 1st and just 4 points more than Barcelona on the league table. This game is the most important game now, and has the potential to decide the title, Madrid can not take any risk and will have to win at all costs if they want to make sure that the league title is theirs.

Real Madrid had drawn 2-2 away from home in the first leg.

Looking at the 

Injury list:

1. Marcelo
2. Reiner Jesus
3. Mariano

Suspended:

1. None

Just recovered:

1. Hazard
2. Nacho

Practiced:

The rest of the players are available for selection. 

Skipped Practice:

• None

Coach Comments:

• . To be decided

Other Comments:

• James has asked not to be selected for the game against Athletic Bilbao and has not been selected since.
• Jovic has taken the third COVID test which turned out negative and has trained with the team. Ready for the final two matches.

Squad Updates:

This match is can decide the title for Real Madrid, Real has a margin of just 4 points and there are 2 games in hand, it could still get tricky for both teams. Real has to be very cautious in selecting the team, more so with several injuries and fatigue setting in for some players. They will try to get all the 3 points at any cost.  

In the goal Courtois will start, he has been in a good form and needs to keep the same going.

Marcelo misses out due to injury. So Ramos and Varane will start as the center backs. Mendy would start on the left and Carvajal on the right. So Mendy, Varane, Ramos and Carvajal should start. Defence has been in fine form but there were few errors and last game also an error led to a goal. So, the defence will have to be very careful.

All the mid-fielders are available now but James might opt out to play like last few games. Modric was really good in the last game. So it is going to be Kroos, Casemiro and Modric in the middle. Valverde and Isco will be on the bench and will come handy in the second half. With matches coming thick and fast these substitutions will play a key role in maintaining the fitness of the team and avoiding fatigue.

The forwards have been in good shape but still did not convert many chances except in the last game, it is going to be a difficult decision for ZZ. Vinicius got his short break and should start on the left and Asensio on the right. So Vinicius, Benzema and Asensio should start, and Jovic, Bale, Hazard, Lucas Vazquez and Rodrygo should be on the bench.

As there are 5 substitutions available, ZZ should think for more rotations in the second half.

The probable substitutions will be: 

Asensio > Rodrygo/Lucas Vazquez

Vinicius > Hazard

Modric > Valverde

Kroos > Isco

Benzema > Bale/Jovic

So the formation would be 4 3 3.

So the final starting 11 will be: