Real Madrid enters into the 2022 calendar year with high morale. The Spanish capital club will partake in two more domestic competitions in January. The Supercopa de Espana and the Copa del Rey. On January 6, Los Blancos will face Alcoyano in the Round of 32 of Copa del Rey.
The game will be an opportunity for Real Madrid to seek revenge against the 3rd division side, who knocked them in the same competition at the same stage last season.
There is a good chance that Carlo Ancelotti will rest the first team players who have been playing regularly in La Liga and the UCL.
Consequently, the Copa del Rey provides a unique opportunity for young and fringe players to play and prove their worth.
Let’s look at five players who can seize their moment in this competition.
Sergio Arribas
Sergio Arribas is one of the most promising youngsters in Real Madrid Castilla. Zidane rated the young Spaniard highly. The legendary French coach gave Arribas his first-team debut even before he had made his debut with Castilla. Arribas is mainly a No.10 or a trequartista but can also operate as a right-winger. His main qualities are dribbling in tight spaces, and his work rate is admirable. Arribas is one of those players who are very likely to play a part in the Copa Del Rey.
The 20-year old is Castilla’s highest scorer this season, with 5 goals to his name in 15 appearances. He has also contributed 3 assists. Getting to the first team for Arribas is about when, rather than if. The club holds Arribas in high regard, and they recently rewarded him with a contract till 2025. With the team expecting significant departures next summer, Arribas has a high chance of getting promoted. As the futures of Isco and Ceballos are seemingly away from Madrid, promoting Arribas makes even more sense. A good performance in the cup can accelerate this process.
Peter Federico
Peter Federico is the latest Castilla youngster to have caught the eye of Real Madrid fans. After a few covid cases emerged in the first team, the team was without all three players capable of playing the right-wing. Due to this, Ancelotti included Peter in the first-team squad against Cadiz and Athletic Club. The youngster made his debut at the San Mames as a substitute in the 86th minute. His cameo was encouraging, as he was involved in three big chances and could have ended up with an assist.
Peter is mainly a right-winger but can also operate as a left-winger, as he did against Athletic. The left-footed winger is full of trickery and dribbling and is apt at beating his man down the wing. With Castilla, Peter has scored 2 goals and provided 3 assists in 16 domestic appearances.
All signs point to the youngster getting meaningful minutes in the Copa del Rey. Ancelotti may rather play Gareth Bale at RW to gradually integrate him after his injury. Consequently, Peter may start the game on the bench and play in the second half. The tournament is an excellent opportunity for the Dominican Republic youth international to get into the first-team mix next season or even at the latter part of this season.
Antonio Blanco
The next player on our list is another up-and-coming Castilla player, Antonio Blanco. The 20-year old is now a more familiar name among the current crop of youngsters. His first call-up came under Zidane. During last season’s Matchday 33 of La Liga, Blanco made his debut against Getafe. Blanco later played two full matches against Cadiz and Espanyol. In both these matches, he operated in a double pivot alongside Casemiro.
From what we saw of him last season, it seemed that Antonio Blanco would get more opportunities this season. It hasn’t been the case thus far. Ancelotti has barely used the Spaniard. The Italian veteran coach has heavily relied on Kroos, Casemiro, and Modric. Even Camavinga and Valverde, who seem to be ahead of Blanco in the pecking order, have had a shortage of minutes at times.
It’s fair to expect for Blanco to get some playing time in the Copa del Rey. He could either play as a lone deep-lying playmaker or in a double pivot. If he impresses the Italian boss, he may have a part to play in the second half of this season. With the matches coming thick and fast, rotations will be needed, and Blanco can force his way into them if he performs well.
Luka Jovic
Luka Jovic is not having the best of his time at the Spanish capital. The Serbian looked to be a good signing, having had a brilliant season at Eintracht Frankfurt in 2018/19. However, Jovic has done very minimal to prove that he is worth the 50 million euros Real Madrid had reportedly paid for him.
Recently, the tides are seeming to turn his way, with clinical performances against Real Sociedad and Atletico Madrid. With Benzema getting a knock, Jovic came on in the early stages of the match against La Real. And he got a match-winning performance, with a goal and an assist. Jovic also played well against Atletico. He needs to perform similarly well in the chances that are going to come his way.
With Erling Haland a reported target for Real Madrid, it is now or never for the 24-year old Jovic. Any revival in performances would increase his chances of him getting to greener pastures. Or even a stay at Los Blancos could be possible. Jovic has to make sure he grabs every opportunity that comes his way, and Copa del Rey surely is a chance to impress.
Jovic may not be able to play against Alcoyano because of a positive COVID result. But he will be relied upon in the next stages of the competition if Real Madrid does go through.
Miguel Gutierrez
Miguel Gutierrez, like Blanco, is another Castilla player who broke through in the first team in the latter part of last season. Mendy’s injury, and Marcelo’s limitations in defending led to Zidane looking towards the academy again. Another gem was unearthed in Miguel. The young left-back showed a lot of promise and forced his way into Real Madrid’s regular squads.
At the start of this season, with Mendy still recovering from that injury, Ancelotti also looked towards Miguel for the left-back problem. And it’s safe to say that he repaid the faith. Miguel played a crucial role against Real Betis, while he got an assist to his name against Celta Vigo as well. With Ferland Mendy back to full fitness, Miguel is no longer getting any minutes, not even off the bench.
This situation looks set to be changed in the Copa. Miguel deserves to start in the tournament. There is a chance that Ancelotti may prefer Marcelo instead. However, Miguel has age and potential by his side. After what he showed at the end of last season and the start of this one, Miguel should get the nod. The youngster needs to make sure he does well enough to earn a backup LB role next season. Or even a loan move to a Spanish first division side cannot be ruled out.