Real Madrid Predicted XI vs Alaves: Rotations Expected

Who will start for Real Madrid vs. Deportivo Alaves on Saturday night?

Real Madrid come out of a very good win against Inter Milan as their main objective now is to keep up the form. We haven’t seen any type of consistency from Los Merengues so far this season and it is definitely something they will need to fix as soon as possible as they take on Alaves in a game where Zinedine Zidane will probably feel he can make some small rotations.

Goalkeeper

We are still waiting to see Andriy Lunin make his official Real Madrid debut but it won’t be happening on Saturday night as Thibaut Courtois will be the man between the sticks. Even with rotations, Zidane won’t take extremely unnecessary risks and no one can blame him for that.

Defenders

On a normal day with all our players fit and ready to go, we would normally see two or three changes to our defensive lineup but unfortunately, there isn’t too much for the manager to mess around with. Lucas Vazquez is expected to be our right-back for the third game in a row as Dani Carvajal suffered a new injury.

In the center, the duo of Nacho Fernandez and Raphael Varane looks very solid and we will continue to see that until the return of our captain from his injury. On the left, Marcelo will be expected to play as Zidane will probably be giving Ferland Mendy some rest. Our statistics with Marcelo on the pitch haven’t been great but he will have to play and games like the one against Alaves may help boost his confidence as the season will be long.

Midfielders

It was great to see the return of Carlos Casemiro and he will be expected to start this time around after coming on as a substitute against Inter Milan. In front of him, I expect that Luka Modric will be getting some rest as Zidane may go with Martin Odegaard once again with Toni Kroos alongside him. The German has been impeccable in recent matches while Odegaard has continued to improve after some time on the sidelines due to injury and illness.

Forwards

Up front, it will be extremely interesting to see what Zidane has in mind for the game. I think it’s about time we saw Rodrygo Goes start a match again and this would be a good chance for him to do so. However, the manager may be looking to bring Marco Asensio back into the lineup.

Lucas Vazquez has been great as well as he aims for a new contract with the club but he is expected to be starting the match at right back this time around. On the left, benching Eden Hazard may be a good idea as Vinicius Junior could be given a chance to shine as well. Up front, Mariano Diaz will be starting due to the continued absences of Karim Benzema and Luka Jovic.

Full Predicted Lineup

Thibaut Courtois, Dani Carvajal, Nacho Fernandez, Raphael Varane, Marcelo, Carlos Casemiro, Martin Odegaard, Toni Kroos, Rodrygo Goes, Vinicius Junior, Mariano Diaz