Real Madrid vs Paris Saint-Germain Preview

Real Madrid is trailing PSG 1-0 in the Champions League Round of 16, and with the likes of Casemiro and Ferland Mendy suspended, the return leg at the Santiago Bernabeu looks to be a rather tricky affair.

We know that there is no ‘away goal rule’ at play here, but that doesn’t necessarily change the nature of the job required from Carlo Ancelotti’s men. A question many would have pondered is which team the Italian manager will opt for.

The rumours pursuant to Real Madrid this year – and which are seemingly standing the test of time – is that Ancelotti has failed to use his squad depth well. His limited rotation would naturally take a toll on the set of players picked each week, and his fringe players would then ultimately be left with little or no time at all.

At the time of writing this article, Real Madrid have responded to their defeat in Paris with wins over Alaves and Rayo Vallecano. They play Sociedad on Saturday evening, but their previous two wins will be important. They hadn’t conceded a goal in either fixture, but it is the way in which they took those two teams apart that for me was most impressive.

There was a degree of calm and patience about Real and being clinical in front of goal is something that will need to be replicated against a team with lethal pace and dangerous finishing ability. Their defensive prowess will naturally come into question, but Thibaut Courtois has been their best player in my opinion…so another massive performance from the Belgian keeper only provides a base from which they can hope to launch ‘mission qualify’.

It might be a little dramatic, but I think should Real Madrid fail to qualify, the pressure will steadily begin to build on Ancelotti. The whispers around team selection are already caught up in the wind, in 21st century football the fans and media play a role in forming the narrative around the work managers are doing – you don’t want to be caught on the wrong side of the story.