Carlo Ancelotti says he is not planning major player rotation for Tuesday’s final Champions League group game against Union Berlin in Germany.
Real have already won their group and reached the last 16 following five successive victories.
They are the only team in the tournament with a 100 per cent record, but, even though it is an emphatic case of job done, manager Ancelotti does not envisage wholesale changes.
Real drew 1-1 at Real Betis on Saturday and Ancelotti said: “We need to evaluate how the players that played against Betis recover, then we will choose the best possible starting XI.
“If there are some tired players who don’t recover very well, they will rest, but we don’t think about a big rotation with a lot of players resting.
“We will rotate some players if we see any risk, if the players are tired. The ones who played and don’t have any fatigue will be no problem at all.
“Our main goal was to finish top of the group, so we want to put in a good performance and close out the group stage on a high.
Ancelotti has confirmed that Kepa Arrizabalaga will start in goal, but a lengthy list of injury absentees includes keeper Thibaut Courtois, Vinicius Junior and Eduardo Camavinga.
“This is a very special competition,” Ancelotti added at his pre-match press conference in Berlin.
“Real Madrid are always favourites to win this competition whatever happens in the group stage.
“It is always difficult to win it, but we have the quality to fight for it until the end.”
Whether in-form England star Jude Bellingham, who has scored 16 goals in the Champions League and LaLiga this season, is rested or not remains to be seen.
But his stunning impact since moving to Real is not lost on his team-mates, least of all midfielder Lucas Vazquez.
“What a player. We are thrilled to have him here,” Vazquez told Real Madrid’s official website.
“The kind of player he is was clear from day one. He helps the team with his goals and works as hard as anyone.
“He is really enjoying Real Madrid, and I hope he can keep up his form and continue helping Madrid in every facet of the game.
“The team is on a great run, it’s been a strong start to the season. The aim is to finish with a 100 per cent record, so we will try and put on a good display and win the game.
“This season, despite all the injuries we’ve had, the team has not faltered from its winning mentality.
“Whoever plays, the team remains the same and that reflects very well on the group we have here.”
Courtois omitted from Belgium squad for Euro 2024 as Witsel returns
Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois has been omitted from Belgium's 25-man squad for Euro 2024.
Courtois suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury shortly before the start of the season in August, only returning to action against Cadiz earlier this month.
He is seen as the favourite to start between the sticks when Los Blancos face Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League final on Saturday, despite Andriy Lunin impressing as Carlo Ancelotti's side overcame Manchester City and Bayern Munch in the last two rounds.
Courtois became embroiled in a public spat with Belgium coach Domenico Tedesco last June, walking out on the squad when he was not named captain in the wake of Eden Hazard's retirement.
That incident meant he was always unlikely to feature at this year's tournament in Germany, and his absence has now been confirmed with Koen Casteels, Thomas Kaminski and Matz Sels the three shot-stoppers named in Tedesco's 25-man party.
There is, however, a recall for Axel Witsel, who announced his international retirement last May but has now reversed that decision.
Belgium begin their Group E campaign against Slovakia in Frankfurt on June 17, before taking on Romania five days later and Ukraine on June 26.
Full 25-man squad: Koen Casteels (Wolfsburg), Thomas Kaminski (Luton Town), Matz Sels (Nottingham Forest), Timothy Castagne (Fulham), Maxim De Cuyper (Club Brugge), Zeno Debast (Anderlecht), Wout Faes (Leicester City), Thomas Meunier (Trabzonspor), Jan Vertonghen (Anderlecht), Arthur Theate (Stade Rennais), Axel Witsel (Atletico Madrid), Yannick Carrasco (Al Shabab), Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City), Orel Mangala (Lyon), Amadou Onana (Everton), Youri Tielemans (Aston Villa), Arthur Vermeeren (Atletico Madrid), Aster Vranckx (Wolfsburg), Johan Bakayoko (PSV), Charles De Ketelaere (Atalanta), Jeremy Doku (Manchester City), Romelu Lukaku (Roma), Dodi Lukebakio (Sevilla), Lois Openda (RB Leipzig), Leandro Trossard (Arsenal).
Van Dijk welcomes Slot arrival as Liverpool captain commits to Reds future
Virgil van Dijk insists his future remains solely with Liverpool as the Reds captain welcomed incoming Dutch compatriot Arne Slot.
Slot will replace Jurgen Klopp as Liverpool manager, with the Dutchman expected to take charge at Anfield from Saturday after sealing his switch from Feyenoord.
The soon-to-be Liverpool boss leaves the Netherlands after three highly successful seasons with Feyenoord, having led them to the league title in 2023.
Slot will be welcomed by two fellow countrymen on the red side of Merseyside, with Van Dijk and Ryan Gravenberch eager to link-up with their new manager.
As Netherlands began their Euro 2024 training camp on Monday, Van Dijk told a news conference: "I still have a year left on my contract.
"I am club captain and I have made it clear I am there for the new coach and enthusiastic over the next season.
"Obviously, there will be a lot of changes but I am confident we will make a big success of it.
"I congratulated [Slot] of course and I'm really pleased for him and his family. We spoke about the team and the future but now my focus is fully on the national team."
Slot's reign ended with six straight league wins and Feyenoord did not lose any of his final 20 Eredivisie matches at the helm, their last defeat coming against PSV on December 3.
The 45-year-old oversaw exactly 150 games in charge of Feyenoord across all competitions, winning 98 of those contests (65.33 per cent).
Slot also won the KNVB Cup glory in April, overseeing a 1-0 win over NEC Nijmegen in the final of that competition, and Gravenberch believes that success has earnt his Liverpool move.
"I think he can be good for my career, he's a coach who wants to play good football," added Gravenberch.
UEFA and FIFA warned to halt Super League opposition by Spanish court
FIFA and UEFA have been told to stop their opposition against the European Super League (ESL), with a Spanish court ruling warning of anti-competitive behaviour and abuse of a dominant position.
Madrid's commercial court said on Monday the European and world governing bodies violated competition law by banning and punishing clubs from participating in a proposed new tournament.
FIFA and UEFA were told to reverse any anticompetitive actions committed in the past after A22 Sports Management, the company behind the plan to create the ESL, brought the case to Spanish court.
"It's an important step towards a truly competitive and sustainable club football landscape in Europe," A22 CEO Bernd Reichart said in a statement after the ruling.
"For too long UEFA has been allowed to control and dominate club football at European level."
Reichart added that UEFA's position on the ESL has "stifled innovation for decades", though celebrated "the era of the monopoly [as] definitively over".
The case was also brought against LaLiga and the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF), though that pair and UEFA insisted the court ruling did not explicitly support the creation of the Super League.
"The court has not given the green light to, nor has it approved, projects like the Super League," UEFA said in a follow-up statement.
"In fact, the judge has asserted that the Super League project has long been abandoned and that she cannot be expected to rule on any abstract projects.
"In short, the judgment does not give third parties the right to develop competitions without authorisation and does not concern any future project or indeed any modified version of an existing project."
English football's so-called 'big six' – Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United and Tottenham – were founding members of the original Super League project in April 2021.
Yet those Premier League clubs quickly withdrew amid fan protests and pressure from the football authorities, with Milan, Inter and Atletico Madrid following a similar suit.
UEFA has since changed its rules around new competitions following the collapse of the ESL proposal in April 2021 and the court says those new rules are unaffected by Monday's ruling.
"The court also confirmed that the current version of UEFA's authorisation rules [as adopted in June 2022] is not affected by today's ruling," the European governing body added.
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
