Real Madrid totally dominated Manchester City in the first leg of the Champions League Round of 16, as goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois and center midfielder Federico Valverde led the way with incredible games, while center back Antonio Rudiger was also amazing in shutting down Erling Haaland again.
All three players look set to get rewarded with some rest. MARCA report that Real Madrid are expected to leave Fede, Courtois, Rudiger, Trent Alexander-Arnold, and Aurelien Tchouameni to get some much needed time off this weekend against La Liga underdogs Elche on Saturday night.
But Real Madrid will not be underestimating their stingy opponents. Those five stars will likely be rested by manager Alvaro Arbeloa, which means opportunities for top backup keeper Andriy Lunin, veteran right back Dani Carvajal, Fran Garcia, striker Gonzalo Garcia, and young gem midfielder Manuel Angel.
Madridistas will be especially excited to see more of Angel. Like Thiago Pitarch, he has huge upside and is starting to get real licks in there from Arbeloa, even coming in off the bench to see off the win over Manchester City.
Joe Soriano is the editor of The Trivela Effect and a FanSided Hall of Famer who has covered world football since 2010. He’s led top digital communities like The Real Champs (Real Madrid) and has run sites covering Tottenham, Liverpool, Juventus, and Schalke. He also helped manage NFL Spin Zone and Daily DDT, covering the NFL and pro wrestling.