Real Madrid: 3 keys to victory against Cadiz on Matchday 31

Real Madrid will face Cadiz on Wednesday night in La Liga after a scoreless draw over the weekend against Getafe. Whereas Los Blancos will be looking to get revenge after a 1-0 loss to Cadiz early in the season, the home side may have even more motivation, considering Florentino Perez’s recent actions in creating a breakaway European Super League.

Here are three keys to victory for Los Blancos this week when they face Cadiz at the Estadio Ramon de Carranza.

Let Vinicius Junior attack the defense

Cadiz may have held Real Madrid out of the scoresheet in their earlier meeting, owing to a low block that Los Blancos could not break down, but they don’t actually have a great defense. They are among seven teams in La Liga that have allowed at least 45 goals this season, and neither of their center backs are worth fearing.

On the right side of the formation, Cadiz have a competent attacking fullback in Iza, who is averaging 1.6 fouls drawn per game and 1.0 dribbles completed, per WhoScored.com. But he is also someone Vinicius Junior can exploit defensively.

Real Madrid should let Vini make runs behind and attack the defense when he is on the ball. Vini is at a level of quality beyond anything Cadiz has, and Los Blancos need to take advantage of the traits he possesses.

Trust Antonio Blanco

It doesn’t seem like most outlets expect Antonio Blanco to get his first career start for Real Madrid, but I liked what I saw from the 20-year-old center midfielder in his debut at Getafe. He came off the bench and led the team with three tackles, adding in an interception. With Casemiro out and Luka Modric being the only true center midfielder, Blanco’s work rate and defensive competency were important.

Case is back, but Modric and Toni Kroos will not be playing. Therefore, Blanco may become important again, and I’d rather have him as one of the starters instead of Marco Asensio and Isco starting together in midfield. That could be a disaster and could enable Cadiz to exploit wider areas on counterattacks. Meanwhile, Blanco adds solidity and has the speed to cover ground and help Casemiro and the center backs out.

Make sure Karim Benzema has service

If Real Madrid do go with both Isco and Marco Asensio in midfield, then they 100 percent have to make that attacking advantage account and create. Marcelo could start at left back, which is another defensive liability. And in order to overcome that liability, Real will need Marcelo’s crosses to be on point, which can happen with an asymmetric formation in which Nacho, who is less attacking-minded, stays back on the right side.

There will be a lot of tinkering needed on Zinedine Zidane’s part to outsmart Cadiz’s rigid structure and discipline when he does not have an ideal lineup and will be missing his two superstar midfielders. And that means Karim Benzema becomes even more important, which is almost unthinkable considering he is already Reals’ MVP.

Whether it is Rodrygo and Vinicius, Isco and Asensio, or Marcelo out wide, Real need the creators to make sure Benzema has the chances he needs to deliver a goal (or two) and a victory. Real Madrid have to win this game, especially after already dropping points at Getafe.