Real Madrid: 5 key players to watch against Levante

Real Madrid CB Raphael Varane

Real Madrid center back Raphael Varane is off to an excellent start to the 2020-2021 La Liga campaign. He played shutdown football against Real Sociedad, played well against Real Betis despite the scoreline, and looked the stronger of the two center backs in the clean sheet victory over Real Valladolid.

As always, Varane’s reading of the game and ability to close down opportunities are second to none. He sees things before they develop and tracks runs as the attacker thinks of them, seemingly always a step ahead of the most dangerous players in the game.

Levante have a pair of strikers who have been known to give top La Liga clubs trouble, as Jose Luis Morales’ winning goal in February is still fresh in the minds of the Royal White players.

Varane will have to do some extra covering this weekend and may even have to make some more carries into the attack to support what Nacho is doing. There’s a drop-off between Nacho and Dani Carvajal in terms of attacking support, and Varane has the technical quality to hit some attacking-starting passes.

Watch how his all-around ability impacts this game. Varane only needs one good passing lane to spring a counterattack for his team.