After booking a place in the final of 2022/23 Copa del Rey, Real Madrid will have to go past rivals Atletico Madrid if they are to advance to the next stage of the competition.
Madrid advanced to the quarterfinal following an emphatic comeback victory over Villarreal in the last 16 stage before beating Athletic Club in La Liga over the weekend.
While reducing Real Madrid’s three-point deficit to league leaders Barcelona will be high on Carlo Ancelotti’s priority list, the Spanish powerhouses now turn their focus back to the Copa del Rey, where they want to win the trophy for the first time since 2013–14.
In fact, Los Blancos have been ousted at the quarterfinals and haven’t even made it to the Copa del Rey final in the past eight years.
Real Madrid will look forward to Thursday’s return to the Bernabeu, where they are unbeaten in 10 games this season despite only recording one clean sheet during this stretch. Real Madrid have played each of their past seven games away from home in all competitions, so they will be happy to be back.
Los Blancos have already defeated Atletico Madrid in La Liga this year, a 2-1 away victory from four months ago, and have won all four of their home games against them without conceding, so Ancelotti and company can feel confident in keeping their fierce rivals quiet on Thursday.
After winning, drawing, and losing in each of their first three games, Atletico Madrid had a mediocre start to the new year. However, they have since recovered by defeating Levante and Real Valladolid without answering.
In the Copa del Rey round of 16, Los Colchoneros defeated Levante 2-0 on the road. The following weekend, they defeated Valladolid 3-0 at home for all three points in La Liga. Alvaro Morata, Antoine Griezmann, and Mario Hermoso all scored goals within the opening 28 minutes.
Diego Simeone’s team’s chances of winning the league title seem to be ended as they presently sit in fourth place, 13 points behind Barcelona at the top despite having played one more game. Instead, they must fight to finish in the top four since they are tied with Villarreal in fifth place on points.
In the Madrid derby, a match in which they have defeated rivals Real only twice in their last 13 competitive meetings across all competitions, Atletico will now try to build on their recent triumphs with a win.
Atletico Madrid, who has won only two of the last 13 competitive encounters between the two teams across all competitions, will look to capitalise on its recent success by defeating Real Madrid in the Madrid derby.
In their last five games, Atletico has played well on the road, winning four and drawing one. In an effort to advance to the Copa del Rey semifinals for the first time in six years, they will try to catch Real on a bad day on Thursday.
WHERE & WHEN?
Venue: Santiago Bernabeu
Date: Thursday, January 26
Time: 20:00 GMT
TEAM NEWS
Four Real Madrid players Aurelien Tchouameni (calf), Dani Carvajal (muscle), Eden Hazard, and Lucas Vazquez (both ankle) are all out due to injury and are not available for selection.
The return of Austrian international David Alaba, who Ancelotti said “will play” against Atletico after recovering from a calf injury, has given Los Blancos some encouragement.
As Tchouameni recovers from his injury, Eduardo Camavinga is anticipated to complete the midfield three alongside Luka Modric and Toni Kroos, who both started on the bench last time out.
Stefan Savic and Sergio Reguilon, who were both suspended but are now eligible to play again for Atletico, will be competing for the starting left-back and centre-back positions, respectively.
Jose Gimenez, a central defender who has missed the last three games due to a muscular issue, is still questionable and is unlikely to be inserted right away into the starting lineup if he is found to be healthy.
In his first appearance for Atletico, Memphis Depay came off the bench against Valladolid. The Dutchman is expected to start his first game for the team in attack, with Griezmann or Morata possibly being substituted.
PREDICTED STARTING LINEUPS
Real Madrid lineup vs Atletico: Courtois; Nacho, Rudiger, Alaba, Mendy; Modric, Camavinga, Kroos; Valverde, Benzema, Vinicius Jr.
Atletico lineup vs Real Madrid: Oblak; Molina, Savic, Hermoso, Reinildo; Llorente, De Paul, Kondogbia, Carrasco; Griezmann, Depay.
WRITER’S PICK
With Atletico’s recent away form, they could be a tough opposition for Real Madrid considering it is also a derby game. However, Madrid are expected to sail through with the team gradually picking up their best form.
