Carlo Ancelotti’s options to replace Vinicius Junior for Real Madrid vs Liverpool | OneFootball

Real Madrid have significantly improved their form over the last few matches after having almost reached a crisis state following the defeats to FC Barcelona and AC Milan.

The Merengues were able to bounce back from their abysmal form with a 4-0 win over Osasuna right before the November international break and sustained their winning run with another 3-0 win over Leganes after they returned to La Liga action on Sunday.

But they have another stern test awaiting them, as they face Liverpool in the UEFA Champions League on Wednesday, and their position on the league table does not allow for any more dropped points if they are to advance to the Round of 16 of the competition.

As fate would have it, Liverpool are one of the best teams in the premier European competition this season, and have won all of their matches in the League Phase up to now.

Furthermore, Real Madrid’s difficulties for this match were increased manifold as their star forward, Vinicius Junior, suffered an injury in the game against Leganes and is now ruled out for around a month.

Rodrygo Goes is already injured, and both these Brazilians were absent from the squad list published by the Merengues for this upcoming game against Liverpool.

However, fortunately, other Real Madrid forwards have improved their form recently, and Carlo Ancelotti will have several options for his forward line for this game.

If the Italian decides to keep to his 4-3-3 formation, one of the most likely forward lines that he can field at Anfield will be that of Kylian Mbappe, Endrick, and Brahim Diaz.

With this formation, Mbappe will be able to play on his preferred wing, while Brahim Diaz, who had an amazing international break with his Moroccan national team, will also get to start. Endrick will also make his first start after a significant break. Another option for Ancelotti will be to start Arda Guler on the right wing once again after the Leganes game.

If the Real Madrid coach decides to tinker with his formation, he can start Mbappe and Brahim upfront, while playing Guler behind them as an attacking midfielder. This might also be an attractive option for the Italian if he does not want to risk playing a striker as inexperienced as Endrick for such an important game.

Similarly, the Italian trainer can also decide to field Bellingham along with Mbappe in the forward role, especially as Bellingham is one of the taller players in the team, and his presence in the box is always an advantage for the Merengues. However, his other valuable contributions in the midfield will be missed with such a setup.

Thus, Ancelotti will have several options for his forward line. However, there is no doubt that Vinicius and Rodrygo will be missed a lot in this game, especially the former who was one of the biggest tormentors of the Merseyside team when they last faced in the UEFA Champions League final in 2022.