Girona vs. Real Madrid: Matchday Squad Announced, No Changes From Athletic Club Game
Real Madrid's head coach announced the squad he was taking for the away game against Girona, and it's the same set of players that went to Bilbao. The starting XI may be different, hoping to return to winning ways in La Liga.
Ancelotti's injury list is still long, so he can only keep the same team. Several academy players will be on the bench again.
Goalkeepers: Courtois, Lunin and Sergio Mestre.
Defenders: Lucas Vázquez, Vallejo, Fran García, Rüdiger, Mendy and Asencio.
Midfielders: Bellingham, Valverde, Modrić, Tchouameni, Arda Güler, Ceballos and Chema.
Forwards: Mbappé, Rodrygo, Endrick, Brahim and Gonzalo.
📋✅ Our squad for the match!
— Real Madrid C.F. 🇬🇧🇺🇸 (@realmadriden) December 6, 2024
🆚 @GironaFC_ENGL #GironaRealMadrid pic.twitter.com/5bHmsYL88u
Vinicius Jr. Expected Back Soon, but Not in Time for Girona
Today's positive news was that star-forward Vinicius Jr. is expected to return sooner. After the announcement, pictures emerged of him training with the squad today. Still, Ancelotti said in his press conference that he would be back for the Champions League game against Atalanta.
🚨⚪️ Excellent news for Real Madrid as both Vinicius Jr and David Alaba return to team training in the first part of the session!
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) December 6, 2024
Vini’s prepared to return ahead of schedule. pic.twitter.com/qcyNYFqrZT
David Alaba has also returned to team training; both will be needed in the squad. Ancelotti continues to have a matchday squad consisting of several academy players. With mainly inexperienced players to choose from, it is harder to make changes after a loss, so don't expect to see many changes to the starting XI, if any.
Luka Modric, Arda Guler, and Ferland Mendy could be the only players pushing for a start. Modric will likely play in midfield, and Mendy will play as left-back, the most likely changes.
It's a must-win for Los Blancos after they dropped points to Athletic Club. They don't want to fall further behind Barcelona after working hard to draw closer to the league leaders over the previous games.
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Transcript: Carlo Ancelotti's Pre-Match Press Conference Ahead of Girona vs Real Madrid In La Liga
Jordan Merritt is a freelance soccer writer who covers Real Madrid CF On SI. He is an obsessive soccer fan and an Arsenal supporter.