Real Madrid are up against Barcelona in their next game of the 2021/22 Spanish La Liga campaign over the weekend.
The Los Blancos will go into the game off the back of a commanding victory over Shakhtar Donetsk in the UEFA Champions League on Tuesday night.
Among the goals on the night was Rodrygo Goes, who played brilliantly in the win, commanding praise from manager Carlo Ancelotti.
While his performance against Shakhtar was good and convincing enough for both the team and the manager, it also presents a headache for the latter as he prepares his team for the game against their fierce rivals on Sunday.
The Italian is likely to be in a dilemma between playing the Brazil international or fixing Federico Valverde, who has been a workaholic in the Madrid midfield in the last few seasons.
Valverde started from the bench in Tuesday night’s game, replacing Toni Kroos in the 78th minute of the game. The decision to leave out the central midfielder, according to Ancelotti was due to his late arrival from international duty with Uruguay.
However, with Kroos, Luca Modric, and Casemiro all returning to full fitness and likely to start against Barca, Valverde will either have to play as a makeshift winger or start once again from the bench.
It means the coach have to choose between the Uruguayan and Rodrygo, who looks to be picking up for his best game this season.
Ancelotti already admitted leaving Rodrygo out of his lineup for the game against Barca will be difficult but the Catalan side’s style of play could force him to leave out the youngster to play Valverde.
Valverde has been quite good in his previous games against the Blaugranas, starting the last four encounters and scoring one during that time. His work rate in those games has been immense but Rodrygo’s creativity in his game has also been an addition to the team up front.
The decision is Ancelotti’s to make, but who would you want to see start from the right-wing against Barcelona?
