PREVIEW. 26/01/2023. Rodrigo Salamanca
Real Madrid host Atlético in a single-game knock-out tie (9:00pm CET).
Real Madrid return to the Santiago Bernabeu pitch some 77 days on from their last outing, and it’s sure to be worth the wait: a derby clash with Atlético in the Copa del Rey quarter-finals (9:00pm CET). Ancelotti’s boys head into the single-game knock-out looking to book their place in the competition semi-final.
Naturally, the two sides are very well acquainted and their Copa rivalry is already a historic one, with the madridistas and the rojiblancos having crossed paths 42 times in the tournament. To get to this stage, Real Madrid beat Cacereño and Villarreal on the road, the latter following a quite stunning comeback.
“It’s a special game and we’ve got a chance to reach the semi-final of a major competition”, stated. Ancelotti in the pre-match press conference. The Italian coach was unable to name Tchouameni, Lucas Vázquez, Hazard or Carvajal in his. squad but Benzema will be present. The Frenchman is the team’s leading marksman this season (12) and netted last time out in the LaLiga clash with Athletic at San Mames.
Atlético
Our rivals touch down at the Bernabéu having just beaten Valladolid 3-0 in the league. In the Copa del Rey, they have already seen off Almazán, Arenteiro, Oviedo and Levante. Their leading scorers so far this term are Morata and Griezmann, with eight and seven goals respectively.
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