With a trip to the Copa del Rey semifinals on the line, an injury-plagued Real Madrid must take on Leganes at the Estadio Municipal de Butarque.
Just last week, Real Madrid were riding the high of a five-game winning streak in which they scored 20 goals across all competitions. Now, the defending Spanish and European champions saw their lead atop the La Liga standings all-but disappear after a shocking 1–0 loss to Espanyol. Los Blancos also learned they will face Manchester City in the Champions League knockout phase playoffs.
Before Carlo Ancelotti's men can look ahead to the UCL clash or even the Madrid derby this weekend, they first must return to Copa del Rey action. On paper, 16th-place Leganes should not give Real Madrid many problems, but Los Blancos are going through an injury crisis that is getting worse by the day.
Not only will Real Madrid be without long-term absentees Dani Carvajal and Éder Militão, but they are still missing the injured Eduardo Camavinga and Antonio Rüdiger. Ancelotti also confirmed Jude Bellingham, Kylian Mbappé and David Alaba are all dealing with new issues and cannot play in Wednesday's match. Thibaut Courtois will miss out on the trip as well for a much-needed rest.
Here's what Real Madrid's XI could look like against Leganes on Feb. 5.
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Real Madrid Predicted Lineup vs. Leganes (4-2-3-1)
GK: Andriy Lunin—The Ukrainian comes back into the XI to give Courtois a rest.
RB: Lucas Vázquez—Vázquez is still the main man on the right flank despite his defensive liabilities.
CB: Raúl Asencio—The 21-year-old gets the nod in place of the injured Rüdiger.
CB: Aurélien Tchouaméni—The Frenchman must resume his emergency center back duties now that Alaba is back on the sidelines.
LB: Fran García—García will look to better link up with Vinícius Júnior after the pair was not on the same page at the weekend.
DM: Fede Valverde—Valverde only featured off the bench last Copa del Rey outing for Real Madrid, but the Uruguay international is needed in Ancelotti's makeshift midfield.
DM: Dani Ceballos—The Spaniard could make way for Luka Modrić, but Ceballos has impressed as of late alongside Valverde.
RW: Brahim Díaz—Díaz is back on the right wing after playing just three minutes at the weekend.
AM: Arda Güler—The teenager could be in for just his second start of the new year with Bellingham unavailable. Güler's creativity was greatly missed in Real Madrid's defeat to Espanyol.
LW: Vinícius Júnior—All the pressure will be on the Brazilian to lead Real Madrid's attack in the absence of Mbappé. Vinícius Júnior struggled to get much going in his first game back from suspension at the weekend.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Real Madrid Predicted Lineup vs. Leganes: Copa del Rey.
