Real Madrid: 5 key players to watch against Liverpool at Anfield

Real Madrid hold a 3-1 advantage over Liverpool in their Champions League quarterfinal tie, and they will want to assert their superiority on Wednesday night at Anfield. Zinedine Zidane will be wary of this venue, as Real’s bitter rivals once fell to an epic comeback there a couple of years ago. Although the magic of Anfield has seemingly dissipated, we know Real will not let up.

They must play without several key players. Lucas Vazquez suffered a season-ending injury over the weekend, becoming the latest casualty in a grueling 2020-2021 campaign.

Here is a look at five key players to watch on Real Madrid in this second leg.

RB Alvaro Odriozola

It’s unclear if Alvaro Odriozola will start, because Zinedine Zidane could do some shifting around with a back three formation to avoid starting Odri. I even predicted a surprise start from Rodrygo Goes as the right-sided wide man in this sort of a 3-5-2 formation.

But Real may have to start the former Real Sociedad man, who has been a huge disappointment this season for Los Blancos. Lest we forget, he had an assist for Bayern Munich while on loan last year in the Champions League, and he did win the treble.

Odriozola isn’t a bad player, but he’s been poor throughout the 2020-2021 season. Clearly, he does not have Zidane’s trust, and I do not blame the manager if this is the case. If he does start, though, the pressure will be on Odriozola. He must prove that he belongs at this club.

CM Fede Valverde

We do not know for sure if Fede Valverde will play. The Uruguayan center midfielder is going to put himself at some risk in order to suit up, but he feels it is vital for him to be available for Real Madrid this Wednesday. Per MARCA, he may even be injected with painkillers so that he can play through the pain.

That does not seem advisable, but Valverde is determined. And Madridistas are not surprised by this, given how his career has gone at Real Madrid. He gives more than 100 percent, as the coachspeak goes. If Valverde plays, he could be an impact sub who helps Real lock down the result. His defending may be necessary to help support Odriozola.

CB Eder Militao

Eder Militao had one heck of a performance last week against Liverpool. He showed Real Madrid that he has what it takes to be a quality piece of the puzzle defensively, even as rumors once swirled that Los Blancos would cut ties with him due to a lack of trust from Zidane.

It seems as if Militao has earned that trust now. He has generally played well whenever he’s started, and he continued his good form in Saturday’s 2-1 win over Barcelona. If Militao can have another good performance this week against Liverpool, his place at Real will be sealed.

LW Vinicius Junior

Vinicius Junior had an awesome night against Liverpool last week, just like he did in the second leg against Atalanta. Except he was even better this time, because he found the back of the net twice. It was a clinical showing from the 20-year-old, and since finishing has been the only missing piece in his game, it was huge to see Vini in his element in front of goal.

Imagine if he has a third straight big-game performance on a Champions League night. Like Rodrygo, Vini seems to play at another level in this competition, though we can also say he does this for any big match. For example, Vini was great this weekend in El Clasico, standing out as the unstoppable man on the pitch just like in last year’s second Clasico.

CM Toni Kroos

Another standout from last week’s big Real Madrid wins? German midfielder Toni Kroos. Arguably Real’s best player of the season and the outstanding midfielder in world football, Kroos completely picked apart Liverpool in the first leg. He created Real’s first two goals and had a great deal of success when it came to controlling the game and mitigating the Reds’ hopes of creating chances through pressing.

Kroos is so difficult to cope with defensively, because he can complete any pass and is never rattled by pressure. It is so important for a midfielder to use their body, make soft touches, and always keep in mind the most progressive option with a mental map in their head. Kroos does everything perfectly and is almost like a supercomputer, calculating the best possible pass before he even receives the ball.

I don’t foresee Liverpool having a real plan to stop him this Wednesday, and that should be enough to lead Real Madrid to another positive result at Anfield.