After a roller-coaster week that saw a frustrating loss to Osasuna followed by a vital midweek victory over Benfica, Los Blancos are back at the Santiago Bernabéu this Monday to host Getafe. Sitting in 2nd place with 60 points, we need to keep the pressure on at the top of the table.
But as has been the theme lately, Carlo Ancelotti has quite the puzzle to solve when it comes to the squad list. Let’s dive into the team news, injury updates, and our predicted XI.
Real Madrid vs Getafe: Match FYIs
- Kickoff: Monday, March 2, 8:00 PM CET
- Venue: Estadio Santiago Bernabéu, Madrid
- La Liga Form: Real Madrid (2nd, 60 pts) LWWWW | Getafe (13th, 29 pts) DDWWL
- Win Probability: Real Madrid 73% | Draw 17% | Getafe 10%
The Treatment Room: The Good, The Bad, and The Galáctico
Let’s start with the best news of the week: Rodrygo is back! Our dynamic Brazilian has fully recovered from his nagging hamstring injury and has the green light to play. His return gives our attack a massive and much-needed injection of pace and creativity.
However, the situation surrounding the Galáctico of all Galácticos, Kylian Mbappé, remains a bit cloudy. He’s been battling sore knees, which kept him on the bench on Valentine’s Day against Real Sociedad and sidelined him entirely for the midweek Benfica clash. While he is likely to feature against Getafe, expect his minutes to be heavily managed. Don’t be surprised if he starts from the bench.
The Unavailable List:
- Jude Bellingham: Still recovering from a hamstring issue; eyeing an April return.
- Eder Militão: Hamstring problem; expected back later this month (March).
- Dean Huijsen: Out for another week or so with a calf muscle tear.
- Raul Asencio: Sidelined for another week due to head and neck issues.
Defensive Dilemma: Alaba’s Rare Start
When you crunch the numbers on our injury list, a glaring issue emerges at the back. With Militão, Huijsen, and Asencio all out, Carlo Ancelotti is left with exactly two fit central defenders: Antonio Rüdiger and David Alaba.
Because there are literally no other senior options available, we are going to see something that rarely occurs these days—a guaranteed start for Alaba at the heart of the defense. He and Rüdiger will need to anchor the backline securely against a physically demanding Getafe side.
Predicted Starting XI (4-3-3)
Given the squad constraints and the need to rest heavy legs, here is how we expect Ancelotti to line up the boys on Monday night:
- Goalkeeper: Thibaut Courtois
- Defenders: Trent Alexander-Arnold, Antonio Rüdiger, David Alaba, Alvaro Carreras
- Midfielders: Federico Valverde, Aurélien Tchouaméni, Eduardo Camavinga
- Forwards: Arda Güler, Gonzalo Garcia, Vinícius Jr.
Expect Rodrygo to make an impact off the bench as he eases back into match fitness, and keep an eye out for a potential Mbappé cameo if things get tight!