Real Madrid are set to host Getafe in their upcoming La Liga match. Despite this being a cross-town tie, the Merengues will be coming into this game with their morale quite low after their loss to Liverpool in their last UEFA Champions League game.
Furthermore, Los Blancos will be without several of their key players for this game, including Eder Militao, Dani Carvajal, Eduardo Camavinga, Aurelien Tchouameni, and David Alaba. Another key absence for this game will be Vinicius Junior, who was keenly missed by Real Madrid in their last game.
Similarly, although Rodrygo Goes has been named in the squad for this game, he is returning after several weeks on the sidelines, and might not be ready to start the game on Sunday.
Thus, Ancelotti will have one or two forward positions to fill with his substitutes, depending on which formation he chooses. Generally, the Italian has used a three-forward scheme for the most part of the season, and he is expected to keep to this system for the upcoming game as well.
Therefore, three Real Madrid forwards who have not been starters for Ancelotti will have the opportunity to showcase their talents and climb up in the pecking order in this Getafe game, i.e., Brahim Diaz, Arda Guler, and Endrick.
Against Getafe, Ancelotti can decide to repeat the attacking lineup from the Liverpool game, i.e., Mbappe on the left wing, Brahim in the centre, and Arda Guler on the right.
But two of these players, Mbappe and Brahim, faced injury concerns after the game, but while they are ready for this game, Ancelotti might decide to sub them early and give Endrick significant time in the second half.
As things stand, Brahim is the most experienced and also seems to be the highest in the pecking order among these three forwards. This season, he has played in 8 La Liga and 2 UCL matches, starting 1 game in each competition, totalling 222 minutes in La Liga and 135 minutes in UCL.
But he also has had to miss significant game time due to injury, and this season he continues to be an important sub off the bench. The Moroccan has 1 goal and 2 assists to his name in the league.
On the other hand, Arda Guler has played 9 games in La Liga and another 4 in the UEFA Champions League, but he has not really been used a lot by Ancelotti in the most important games. In total, he has 347 minutes in La Liga and 95 minutes in the UCL. However, he has yet to open his scoring account this season and has only 1 La Liga assist to his name.
Lastly, Endrick has also played 9 La Liga games and 3 UCL games this season, and he is the most efficient of these three players, at least in terms of scoring as despite playing only 92 minutes in the league and 78 minutes in UCL, he has 2 goals to his name.
With Mbappe on the left wing, two of these players will get a chance to showcase their talents from the very start. Hopefully, all of these players will embrace this challenge, and look to enhance their position under Ancelotti with quality performances in this game.