The defeat of Real Madrid against Real Betis made it clear that Ancelotti will have to make changes to the defense for the first leg of the Champions League round of 16 against Atlético de Madrid at the Santiago Bernabéu. The Italian coach said it himself at a press conference, “playing like that we won’t win on Tuesday”.
Ancelotti had some doubts about the defense ahead of the match at the Villamarín. In the end he opted to bench Asencio and pair Alaba and Rüdiger at center-back. A pairing that, in view of the bandages, is not at the top of its game. Alaba is not yet ready for big games and neither is Lucas. For his part, Rüdiger is far from his best. The test was a failure.
Many have pointed to Rüdiger as one of the main culprits of the defeat. Javier Herrárez, on SER radio, justified his bad game. The fatigue and his physical condition seem to be taking their toll on his game. SER has revealed the reason for his poor performance this Saturday. The SER journalist, Javier Herrárez, insisted that Rüdiger did not play the match against Betis at one hundred percent fitness, he looked out of sorts. “Rüdiger is not at his best. He’s not 100% and it’s no joke,” said the journalist. The truth is that the German centre back, specializing in stopping Haaland, does not usually make mistakes like the penalty.
“Ancelotti is bouncing off Vinicius, Rodrygo and Mbappé because they don’t get down”, added Javier Herrárez on Cadena SER. We will have to see what decisions the coach makes ahead of Tuesday’s game and whether he will once again field Asencio in the center of the defense. The poor performance of the defense at the Villamarín is bad news for Real Madrid, who will have to make decisions and changes, surely ahead of the Champions League game.