Is the Arda Guler debut finally going to happen? After multiple injury setbacks, are we finally going to see the teenage Turkish prodigy take to the pitch? Taking on a fourth tier side, in Arandina, seems like the perfect time and space for Arda Guler to break into the team.
He was match fit enough to be named to the bench yesterday, in Real Madrid’s 1-0 league win over La Liga.
Copa Del Rey FYIs
Real Madrid at Arandina
Kickoff: Sat. Jan. 6, 9:30pm, El Montecillo, Aranda de Duero, Spain
Real Madrid Preview Material: Team News Starting XI Prediction
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Fun Fact: Real Madrid are the third all-time most successful club in this tournament, having won it 20 times previously.
Real Madrid Team News
So the next logical step for Guler would be some minutes off the bench here. Meanwhile Eduardo Camavinga (knee ligament) and Ferland Mendy (unspecified muscular problem) are both doubts due to injury here.
Finally, Eder Militao, Thibaut Courtois and David Alaba (all Anterior Cruciate Ligament) all remain out as long-term injury absentees. Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti previously said that his club would dip into the January transfer market for a new defender, as a means to solve the back line injury crisis, but the club has since changed their stance.
According to various reports, the club will actually stand pat in this regard.
Paul M. Banks is the owner/manager of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
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