Real Madrid v Barcelona: 'Xavi needs to find an ace up his sleeve!' – Preview of upcoming Copa del Rey Clasico
Updated 01/03/2023 at 15:50 GMT
Ahead of the midweek El Clasico clash between Real Madrid and Barcelona at the Santiago Bernabeu in the Copa del Rey on Thursday, we got in touch with our friend Felix Martin from Eurosport Spain to get the lowdown on all the latest news from the two big Spanish giants. Which players will miss the clash and where will it be won and lost on the field?
Barca's Araujo on Real Madrid Copa del Rey clash - 'Clasico matches are the games everybody wants'
It may have escaped your notice but we have a Clasico this week! Yes, that’s right, eternal rivals Real Madrid and Barcelona will do battle in the first leg of their Copa del Rey semi-final clash.
The first leg is being played at the Bernabeu on Thursday, March 2, and you can follow along with Eurosport’s live coverage. The return leg will be at the Camp Nou on April 5, over a month later.
It has a strange time for both of the Spanish giants. Real Madrid did get the big win in the Champions League over Liverpool, but they have dropped points in the past couple of months and are seven points behind in the title race.
It has not all been plain sailing for Barcelona either, they were knocked out of the Europa League by Manchester United and then were beaten at the weekend by Almeria. Plus, now star forward Robert Lewandowski is out for a short period with an injury.
So in order to set the scene a bit for the Clasico, we got in touch with Felix Martin from Eurosport Spain to see what’s going on.
Let’s start with the Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti, who has been relatively prickly in the past few weeks. What’s going on there?
“For some time now, there has been quite a bit of controversy between Vinicius and the referees,” Martin explained.
“I think what Ancelotti is doing is trying to be the focus of the criticism and somehow 'take the hit’ to try to take pressure off his players. But I don't think there is any kind of open war between Ancelotti and the referees.”
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Carlo Ancelotti and Vinícius Jr
Image credit: Getty Images
And what about Barcelona? Should we worry about this slight dip or is there nothing to be concerned about?
“As you say, I think this is simply the typical blip that all teams have every year," Martin said.
“The season is very long and there are many matches in many competitions to play, so it is normal to have negative results from time to time.
"But again, I think this is just a blip and I don't think it will affect Xavi's team for Thursday's game.”
Speaking of which, as we mentioned above, there will be no Lewandowski for Thursday’s game after he picked up an injury against Almeria. Will anyone else miss out?
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Xavi Hernandez, Manager of FC Barcelona reacts during the LaLiga Santander match between UD Almeria and FC Barcelona at Power Horse Stadium on February 26, 2023 in Almeria, Spain
Image credit: Getty Images
“In Real Madrid's case it seems obvious that David Alaba, Ferland Mendy and Rodrygo Goes will miss the match since we all know they're injured.
“In Barca's case, besides Lewandowski, Pedri and Ousmane Dembele won't play either since they're injured as well.”
We also asked Martin what the anticipation for this game would be. Of course, it’s a Clasico, but at the same time it is in the competition that the two teams take the least seriously.
“A Clasico is always a Clasico, no matter the circumstances it is played in. It does not matter if it is a pre-season friendly or a Champions League final, in the end the rivalry is always present and the pride of both teams prevails.
“I think both Ancelotti and Xavi will pick the strongest teams they possibly can and will not hold back any of their players, since at the end of the day there is a title at stake.”
And finally, where does Martin see the key tactical battles for this clash?
“I think that sometimes in such visceral games the heart can become much more important than what the coaches have in the tactical side of their planning.
"But I do think Xavi will have to find an ace up his sleeve to find a competitive starting 11 taking into account the injuries he has.
“I think the duel between Ronald Araujo as a right-back and Vinicius Jr as Madrid’s left-winger will be important. The last time we watched this duel, Araujo managed to keep Vinicius effectively out of the final of the Spanish Super Cup.
“In addition, Ancelotti will have to think about how many midfielders he wants to play with to try to take the control of the ball from Barcelona. In my opinion, Dani Ceballos will play alongside Aurelien Tchouameni and maybe Luka Modric or Toni Kroos, but it will be important to know if Fede Valverde will act as a fourth midfielder or as a right winger.”
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