After a two-week international break, Real Madrid are back at the Santiago Bernabéu to take on 18th-place Leganés.
As the La Liga season winds down, the fight for the Spanish crown is becoming closer and closer each week. Real Madrid went into the international break level with Barcelona atop the standings, but the Catalans won their game in hand against Osasuna, putting Hansi Flick's men back in sole possession of first place.
To keep the pressure on their bitter rivals, Real Madrid must collect three points against Leganés. The two sides met in the Copa del Rey just last month, and it took a stoppage time winner from Gonzalo García for Los Blancos to bag a 2–3 victory and advance to the semifinals.
Unlike that match, though, Carlo Ancelotti will have most of his strongest players available from the opening whistle. Real Madrid will only be without the injured Ferland Mendy, Dani Ceballos, Dani Carvajal and Éder Militão. Thibaut Courtois, meanwhile, is expected to sit out of the clash due to overload.
Here's what Real Madrid's XI could look like against Leganés on Mar. 29.
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Real Madrid Predicted Lineup vs. Leganés (4-2-3-1)
GK: Andriy Lunin—The Ukrainian gets the nod between the posts while Courtois recovers from a minor issue.
RB: Lucas Vázquez—Vázquez starts on the right flank, freeing up Fede Valverde to return to the midfield.
CB: Raúl Asencio—Asencio might not have logged any minutes for Spain during the international break, but he is back in Ancelotti's XI.
CB: Antonio Rüdiger—The Germany international will hope to lead Real Madrid to their first clean sheet in over a month.
LB: Fran García—Mendy is still sidelined with a hamstring injury, so García continues to start at left back.
DM: Eduardo Camavinga—Aurélien Tchouaméni played over 210 minutes for France during the international break, leaving the door open for Camavinga to start in his place.
DM: Fede Valverde—Although Valverde played well at right back, Real Madrid are at their best when he is in the midfield. Do not be surprised, though, if Luka Modrić takes Valverde's spot in the lineup to give the Uruguayan some extra rest.
RW: Rodrygo—Rodrygo will be happy to be back in Spain after two lackluster outings for Brazil.
AM: Jude Bellingham—The 21-year-old is Real Madrid's best playmaker and has developed great chemistry with Mbappé in the attack.
LW: Vinícius Júnior—The winger finally broke his goal-drought for Brazil and will look to translate his form to La Liga, where he has found the back of the net just 10 times this season.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Real Madrid Predicted Lineup vs. Leganes.
