Real Madrid to give more La Liga opportunities to fringe players as title defence slips away | OneFootball

Sunday’s El Clasico defeat has all but ended Real Madrid’s defence of the La Liga title that they won last season. Barcelona are now 12 points clear at the top of the table, with Carlo Ancelotti’s sit closer to 3rd than 1st.

As such, focus appears to have shifted towards prioritising the Champions League and Copa del Rey. Ancelotti is set to go full strength in the matches against Barcelona and Chelsea next month, and the league will be used to give more playing time to playing whose future at Real Madrid is uncertain, as per Diario AS.

The likes of Dani Ceballos and Nacho Fernandez, who have already played regularly in 2023, will continue to see plenty of action, while players such as Eden Hazard, Andriy Lunin, Mariano Diaz and Jesus Vallejo are expected to feature more in the final 12 league matches of the season.

In essence, it will be an audition for those to stake their claim to remain at Real Madrid into next season, as plans are put in place to get rid of fringe players ahead of a potentially big summer.