By David Lee Wheatley
Spanish giants Real Madrid were granted a free weekend in preparation for their Champions' League clash against Bayern Munich, with the first leg on Wednesday at the Bernebeu. Well rested and ready to go, can they halt Bayern's charge towards a second successive Champions' League trophy?
Carlo Ancelotti's men bounced another two German clubs out of the competition in the shape of Borussia Dortmund and near neighbours Schalke within the knockout stages so far, but struggled to sweep Dortmund aside ultimately despite a comfortable 3-0 victory in the quarter-final first leg. Real Madrid travelled to the industrial heartland of Germany apparantly in total control of the tie, yet lost 0-2 on the evening and were hanging on by the end.
Bundesliga champions already with matches to spare, Bayern Munich represent a significant step up in class from Real's previous German opponents and will provide their sternest test yet in this year's competition. They put English pair Arsenal and Manchester United to the sword prior to being paired with the Madrid behemoth and will feel confident of progressing to the final in order to have the opportunity to defend their title.
Highly decorated former Juventus, Milan, Chelsea and PSG supremo Ancelotti has tactical options open to him, with his squad equally adept at operating a free-flowing 4-3-3 formation or a more conservative 4-2-3-1 set-up. A lot will depend on Cristiano Ronaldo's fitness in terms of team selection, as the Portuguese star is struggling to make the opening meeting with Bayern due to a hamstring injury that saw him miss his side's midweek Copa del Rey triumph over arch-rivals Barcelona.
With the onus on Real to force the issue at home during the first leg of the contest, it's likely they will select an attacking 4-3-3 line-up with Bale and Isco sitting either side of main striker Karim Benzema in the expected absence of Ronaldo. Bale has been in tremendous form of late and his remarkable winning strike with minutes left in Valencia to claim the King's Cup firmly established him as a true Galactico.
The midfield will consist of the outstanding Luka Modric, Xabi Alonso and Angel Di Maria, who's ability to get down the wing and get accurate crosses into the box will be key to Real's success on the evening. Then, a back-four made up of Carvajal, Ramos, Pepe and probably Coentrao will sit ahead of regular goalkeeper Diego Lopez; Copa hero and former Real captain Iker Casillas is unlikely to maintain his position between the sticks despite his involvement in Wednesday's victory.
Should Cristiano Ronaldo become available, it'd push the youthful Isco out of the starting eleven. However, it's doubtful that Ancelotti will be able to call upon his 45-goal genius and that would be a shattering blow to the Italian's hopes of guiding his team to a solid first-leg lead. He requires all of his big guns in place from the start of this two-legged tie, otherwise it's quite conceivable that Real will need to pull off an unlikely win in Munich if they wish to make the final in Lisbon.
Doubts surround Los Blancos' stomach for the fight following their surrender in the north-west Ruhr region of Germany, which almost cost them their spot in the final four of this season's Champions' League. However, on their day they are a truly fantastic side and if they manage to get Ronaldo back in the mix and firing on all cylinders, the lifting of their first European Cup since 2002 could be within their grasp.
Twitter: @davewh1980
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