A battle of two historical European giants awaits us as Real Madrid take on AC Milan at the Santiago Bernabeu in match day 4 of the UEFA Champions League.
The past 10 days have been rather forgettable for Real Madrid, with FC Barcelona humiliating the Merengues by 0-4 and Vinicius Junior not receiving the Ballon d’Or, in what was deemed a highly controversial decision.
Then the match against Valencia in La Liga was postponed to a later date, due to the floods in Valencia.
However, these 10 days could prove to be a blessing in disguise because nowadays in football, it is rare to receive such a long rest. This also gave a chance for Antonio Rüdiger to recover from his niggle and Rodrygo to be fully fit for this fixture.
The break also gave Carlo Ancelotti a chance to try and fix the flaws in the side and helped him identify a ‘defensive problem.’ It was surprising to see that it took a manager of such caliber so long to recognise a problem that was visible since the game against Alaves – and worsened since Dani Carvajal’s injury.
Lucas Vazquez does not seem to be the ideal replacement due to his lack of pace and defensive vulnerabilities. Jesus Fortea – who plays for the U-19 side – has impressed Ancelotti during the break but an opportunity for a call up has been hampered due to his injuries.
On the defensive front, Ferland Mendy also has been a shadow of himself and has not been able to hit the ground running this season. The full-back issues need to be sorted out and with the winter transfer window coming up, Florentino Perez may look at his options.
The midfield has been upto the task this season barring El Clasico where Fede Valverde had his worst game, Jude Bellingham played out of position, Tchouaméni was average and Camavinga was the only standout player.
In particular, Jude’s positioning on the right flank seemed to be an injustice to the quality the Englishman posses. Fede Valverde instead should be placed on the right flank as the Uruguayan has played there before and done well.
Bellingham has been an integral part of the squad and his dynamism is required more in the midfield rather than performing defensive duties throughout the game.
On the other hand, Vinicius Junior has something to prove not just tomorrow, but for the rest of the season. Arguably the deserved Ballon d’Or winner, Real Madrid would hope that the Brazilian continues to add to his tally of 41 G/A in 41 games in 2024.
Kylian Mbappe has not quite won over the fans yet and the performance against Barcelona just made things worse. Even the Frenchman has a lot to prove and he would hope, that tomorrow is the start of something special.
Endrick has not appeared for Real Madrid since the the loss against Lille whereas Arda Güler has not donned the jersey since the victory against Villareal. These are two talented players and Carlo Ancelotti will need to put his trust in both of them as the duo has performed well in their sporadic stints so far this season.
Speaking of Madrid’s opponents AC Milan, they sit on 7th in the Serie A table in what has been an underwhelming beginning to the season.
The 7-time winners of this prestigious competition lost their initial two games against Liverpool and Bayer Leverkusen before securing their first win of the campaign against Club Brugge.
Star player Rafael Leao has been at the forefront of a potential falling out with manager Paulo Fonseca as he was not named in the starting lineups for their last two league games against Napoli and Monza. The Portuguese instead came on as a substitute and played just 55 minutes over those two games. But for this fixture at least, Fonseca has announced that Leao will be named in the starting lineup.
Christian Pulisic has been the standout player for Milan this season, accumulating 7 goals and 3 assists in 13 matches, out of which 2 goals were in 3 Champions League matches. Theo Hernandez, Alvaro Morata, Tijjani Reijnders have also contributed to the team’s victories so far.
Theo Hernandez, Alvaro Morata, and Brahim Díaz will come up against their former sides, with each looking to get the better of the other. Carlo Ancelotti – arguably the greatest Milan manager of all time – also gears up to face a familiar foe.
So a clash of European royalty awaits us at the Bernabeu – clearly, it does not get better than this and Los Blancos would hope to seal a momentum-gaining victory.