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real madrid football tactics

Zinedine Zidane will be forced to make several changes in his starting eleven to face Levante on Wednesday, since six of his regular starters will miss the game through injury or suspension.

Sergio Ramos, Luka Modric, Karim Benzema, Daniel Carvajal, Gareth Bale and Marcelo are out of the game, and the Frenchman has included youngters Borja Mayoral, Martin Odegaard, Marcos Llorente and Alvaro Tejero in the squad to replace them.

The only youth who has any chances of making it in the starting eleven is Mayoral, who played a good second half against Atletico Madrid last weekend. However, Zidane is expected to include Jese Rodriguez instead, and probably bring Mayoral in from the bench after the break.

Danilo is expected to feature at right-back, with Nacho Fernandez in the other side of the defence. Pepe and Raphael Varane will most likely be the centre-back pair.

In midfield, Mateo Kovacic should come in to replace Modric, featuring alongside Toni Kroos, Isco and James Rodriguez. Cristiano Ronaldo will feature in the forward line with either Jese or Mayoral at his side.

This is Real Madrid’s projected eleven: Navas; Danilo, Pepe, Varane, Nacho Fernandez; James Rodriguez, Kroos, Kovacic, Isco; Jese Rodriguez, Ronaldo.

Levante will miss David Navarro through suspension and injured Pedro Lopez.

This is Levante‘s projected eleven: Marino; Ivan Lopez, Feddal, Medjani, Garcia; Lerma, Mate, Verza, Morales; Deyverson, Rossi.

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Paolo Bruno/Getty Images

Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane has backed Cristiano Ronaldo over his post-derby comments, claiming that the Portuguese has spoken with the team to clarify things.

“Cristiano has spoken with everyone. It’s old news. We know how important Cristiano is and we’re all behind him. The matter has now been resolved,” Zidane explained.

The Frenchman called for his players to remain united: “What’s important is what we have going forward and that’s what we’re going to deal with. All of us together, here inside, not outside.”

Zidane also confirmed that Luka Modric has picked up an injury and will be sidelined for the match against Levante: “Modric picked up a nasty knock to his foot and won’t make it back in time.”

Asked about the possibility of lining up youngster Borja Mayoral in the starting eleven to replace injured Karim Benzema, the Frenchman said that “Borja is ready to play.” “I loved his performance against Atlético. He played with real character. I’m pleased for the lad because it’s an important moment for him and he’s doing really well. He deserves to be here with us,” Zidane added.

Los Blancos will face Levante at Valencia on Wednesday night. With their hopes of winning La Liga gone, Zidane is expected to give the usual substitutes a chance.

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Ex-Real Madrid player Michel has said he would like to manage his former club or the Spanish national team one day.

The 52-year-old is currently in charge of Ligue 1 side Marseille but admitted in an interview with Onda Cero that he would like to return to La Liga or manage the 2010 world champions.

Zinedine Zidane is only into his second month as Madrid boss after replacing Rafa Benitez and although he isn’t expected to leave at the end of this season he wasn’t 100% committal on his future in the wake of the home loss to Atletico de Madrid at the weekend.

National team boss Vicente del Bosque is expected to leave his role after the European Championships this summer.

Michel, who played 559 times for Los Blancos, said: “I do not want to stop being cautious, but I feel as capable as any coach to train Real Madrid. Of course, as a Madrid supporter I hope for a coach that is winning a lot of matches.”

He admitted that Real could probably do with a period of calm now after some turbulent months recently.

“It is a moment to stop and have a little calmness. Nothing is achieved with coaching changes,” he commented.

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Real Madrid duo James Rodriguez and Isco have been told they can leave the club at the end of the season, putting a host of Premier League clubs on alert.

Marca and AS said the players have been made aware they can leave, with both having been scapegoats for Real’s poor form this season. Los Blancos sit 12 points behind leaders Barcelona with their hopes of silverware resting with the Champions League once more.

Isco has been attracting the interest of Manchester City and Arsenal in previous transfer windows. With his former boss Manuel Pellegrini set to leave the Etihad Stadium at the end of the campaign, Arsenal may become favourites to secure his signature, particularly as they have major midfield surgery to perform themselves with Thomas Rosicky, Mikel Arteta and Matieu Flamini all set to depart.

A bid of around 40 million euros could be enough to secure Isco’s signature and the player himself would be keen to get more regular first team football than he is experiencing at the Santiago Bernabeu.

Rodriguez, the top scorer at the World Cup in 2014, joined Los Blancos from Monaco after the tournament in Brazil. He was an instant hit in his opening season at the Santiago Bernabeu but has found the going much tougher this season. Manchester United and Chelsea could be leading the chase for his signature in the summer as Real look to recoup most of the 80 million euros they shelled out for him.

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Gareth Bale has returned to first team training to give Real Madrid a timely boost ahead of their game with Levante tomorrow evening.

The Welshman has been out with a calf problem for the past six weeks having picked up the injury in the 5-1 win over Sporting Gijon. He sat out the Champions League win over Roma and also missed the defeat at home to Atletico de Madrid among other games.

That defeat left Madrid all but out of the title race – 12 points behind leaders Barcelona. But Bale’s return could be pivotal as Los Blancos look to regain the Champions League crown they won two years ago.

The 26-year-old had been on an individual training programme for the past few weeks but has now joined the first team squad as they prepare for the match against Levante. While he is unlikely to start, there could be a return from the bench as he looks to build up his match sharpness.

As statement on the club’s official website also provided an update on the match preparations and revealed that Borja Mayoral, Martin Odegaard and Marcos Llorente joined the squad for training.

It read: “The workout started with some one-touch passing exercises out on the training pitch, this was followed by possession and pressure drills and exercises to work on regaining possession. After this, the Whites completed a drill involving a series of one-touch passes and shots on goal. The session ended with a game on a small-sized pitch. “

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real madrid football tactics

Zinedine Zidane has made an unusual squad list for the La Liga match against Levante. Five player from Real Madrid Castilla have been included in the list to replace the six first-team footballers who are sidelined due to injury.

Luka Modric and Karim Benzema have joined Gareth Bale and Marcelo in Real Madrid’s infirmary. On the other hand, Pepe will make his return and is expected to feature in defence alongside Raphael Varane. Sergio Ramos and Daniel Carvajal will miss the match through suspension.

Apart from Borja Mayoral, who made his debut last weekend against Atletico Madrid after Karim Benzema fell injured, Zidane has also called Martin Odegaard, Marcos Llorente, Alvaro Tejero and Ruben Yanez.

Goalkeepers: Keylor Navas, Kiko Casilla and Ruben Yanez.
Defenders: Raphael Varane, Pepe, Nacho Fernandez, Danilo and Alvaro Tejero.
Midfielders: Toni Kroos, James Rodriguez, Lucas Vazquez, Casemiro, Mateo Kovacic, Isco, Martin Odegaard and Marcos Llorente.
Forwards: Cristiano Ronaldo, Jese Rodriguez and Borja Mayoral.

Mayoral could get a chance to feature from the start, although Zidane could also opt to display Jese or Lucas Vazquez as wingers and Ronaldo as a pure number 9.

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Sky Sports pundit Terry Gibson has slammed Real Madrid saying the club is a mess at the moment and they need to do some serious work in the summer if they are to realistically compete for La Liga next year.

Los Blancos slipped to a 1-0 defeat at home to Atletico de Madrid at the weekend and sit 12 points behind Barcelona – their title hopes all but over.

Real’s performances in big games this season has been poor – they have failed to beat any of their top four rivals this campaign.

On top of that, they were thrown out of the Copa del Rey for fielding an ineligible player and were handed a two-transfer window ban on signing new players – which has been suspended for now pending an appeal.

In the wake of their insipid display at the weekend, Gibson, a respected pundit for his knowledge of Spanish football, said Los Blancos need to sort themselves out.

He commented: “To be 12 points behind in the league at this stage signifies that we are currently seeing a Real Madrid team that are a real mess at the moment – and that’s the opinion throughout the Spanish press. Of course, we know where that starts and it starts from the top.

“There are a lot of issues to be sorted out for Real Madrid, not just to be competitive because they should be challenging for the Champions League. The bulk of the squad is there to start planning for next season and I think it is his (Zidane’s) responsibility. I’m estimating that we might see half a dozen big signings but four or five starting regularly.”

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So far this has been a typically exciting season in La Liga, with highlights including the appointment of Gary Neville to manage struggling Valencia and the 0-4 shock defeat of Real Madrid by Barcelona in the Clasico back in November – with Real manager Rafa Benitez losing his job not long afterwards. We are entering the ‘business end’ of the season now, but which sides are still in the running for La Liga glory?

That result in November definitely marked the low point of the season for Madrid, but things have picked up for them considerably since that time – until their setback last weekend. The decision to appoint club legend Zinedine Zidane as the replacement for Benitez was a popular one among fans. Zidane has certainly had a positive impact on the team’s fortunes, with four wins and two draws from his first six matches. This leaves Real in third place in the table, 12 points of league leaders Barcelona, but the fact that the bookies have them as second favourites for the title – at 16/1 – shows how much of an early impact Zidane has had on them. They need Barca to slip up, but stranger things have happened in football than that. They also need top players like Cristiano Ronaldo – ageing but still capable of bursts of devastating effectiveness – a re-energised Gareth Bale and playmaker Luka Modric to maintain the form they have shown since Zidane took the helm at the Bernabeu. Modric in particular has been thriving alongside Isco and Kroos in midfield, and his creativity is essential to Madrid’s chances of capturing the La Liga title this season.

Barcelona look in formidable form just now, having won their last seven – but there remains the possibility that they could be distracted by the Champions League as the season nears its critical point. Having claimed a win in the last 16 first leg against away to Arsenal, they seem likely to reach the quarter finals, but it is questionable whether they can maintain their form in both competitions. Much could depend on which tournament manager Luis Enrique prioritises – and whether star players Luis Suarez, Messi and Neymar retain form and fitness in the run in.

Second placed Atletico Madrid have been enjoying a great season overall, but had stuttered a little until their trip to the Bernabeu. Real are four points behind them now,– but the lack of goals in the team (just 35 scored compared with 71 for Real) shows where their problems lie. Of course, one way of predicting who might win La Liga is to play out a football tournament at home with your friends using a games console or simply from your mobile via casino sites like casinoonline.co.nz – and this will certainly be a fun option.

In summary, although they must come from behind if they want to claim La Liga this season, Real manager Zidane is not ruling it out and neither should the rest of us.

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Real Madrid president Florentino Perez is considering to resign at the end of the season, Spanish newspaper El Confidencial has revealed.

Journalist Javier Matallanas has quoted sources close to the president claiming that “Perez suggested last week he could leave the club at the end of the season.” Apparently, the defeat against Atletico Madrid has reinforced his idea.

When Los Blancos lost 0-1 last Saturday against their city rivals, the fans in the stadium started calling for Perez to quit. They turned to the president’s box and started shouting “Florentino, dimisión” (Florentino, quit) as can be seen in this video:

El Confidencial has revealed that after the game Perez commented on the possibility to call for elections soon. Perez was expected to run for a reelection this year, but he could have changed his mind as both fans and the press blame him for the poor season the team is completing.

This situation is not new to Perez. He resigned as Los Blancos president in February 2006 when the club was in a similar position: They had not won a single title in almost three years and they were trailing Barcelona by ten points in La Liga.

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Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema will be sidelined at least for the next three weeks after suffering a hamstring injury during Saturday’s derby against Atletico Madrid.

The France international returned from a hip injury to face city rivals Atletico in a crucial game, but he had to leave the pitch at half-time after feeling pain in his right leg.

Real went on to lose against Diego Simeone men 0-1, putting an end to their title aspirations, as they sit 12 points behind leaders Barcelona.

After the game, Cristiano Ronaldo complained about the poor planning of the season that has led to Los Blancos suffering critical injury problems in the crucial stage of the season.

Benzema is the last man to join the Los Blancos infirmary, with Gareth Bale, Pepe and Marcelo already on the sidelines.

The club has issued an statement confirming the injury, although not specifying the expected recovery time. “After tests, Karim Benzema has been diagnosed with a muscle injury to his right hamstring,” the statement read.

Spanish press have reported the Frenchman will miss at least three weeks of action, including the La Liga matches against Levante, Celta Vigo, Las Palmas and Sevilla, and the Champions League game against Roma. Zinedine Zidane hopes he will have his country-man back for the Clasico against Barcelona on April 2nd.

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