Injury concerns for Real ahead of Madrid derby
Zidane faces crucial Calderon test
Don't rule anything out. That's the message coming from the Real Madrid camp as they prepare a depleted squad for the derby with Atletico Madrid this Saturday.
Zinedine Zidane has had to deal with injuries for a number of weeks but his inability to replace both Toni Kroos and Casemiro with like-for-like options leaves a potential change of formation very much on the cards.
Isco, James Rodriguez, Marco Asensio, and Lucas Vazquez are all on standby with the participation of likely starters Luka Modric and Mateo Kovacic not yet guaranteed due to fitness concerns.
A 4-3-3, with Alvaro Morata and Karim Benzema competing for the central striking role, could give way to a 4-4-2 where both strikers miss out in favour of bolstering the midfield, leaving Cristiano Ronaldo up front alongside Gareth Bale.
Another option is to drop the Welshman into the midfield in favour of a natural No. 9 lining up with Ronaldo in attack, as Carlo Ancelotti did in the infamous 4-0 win over Bayern Munich in the Champions League in April 2014.
Of course, Zidane was assistant to the Italian tactician on that fateful night, a position where he'd have also witnessed Ancelotti move Sergio Ramos into midfield on occasion. Jose Mourinho even did the same with Pepe from time to time and such a move cannot be ruled out for this weekend's game.
With a plethora of options, none of them his first-choice, available to the Real Madrid boss, the week ahead's training and any further fallout from Tuesday's international fixtures will be crucial to determining how Los Blancos line up at the Estadio Vicente Calderon.
