Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti has confirmed Luka Modric will play against Manchester City in Tuesday’s Champions League semi-final first leg at the Bernabeu.
The Croat has missed the last three games with a thigh injury suffered at the end of April. Los Blancos won the Copa del Rey without him in Sunday’s 2-1 win over Osasuna.
His inclusion against City was in doubt but Ancelotti has confirmed he will take part in the first-leg encounter. “He’s fine. He’ll play tomorrow,” he said of the playmaker in his press conference on Monday.
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When asked how he will set up, the Italian said: “Modric and two others [in midfield]. [Eduardo] Camavinga plays as a wing-back without the ball. With the ball, he changes and moves into central midfield.
“Sometimes he even plays between the lines. He’s not a full-back who pushes forward on the outside. Out wide, we have Vinicius, who is quite dangerous. He’s only a full-back when we don’t have the ball.”
Erling Haaland will try to build on his 51 goals this season in Madrid, of which 12 have come in the Champions League. City were criticised for the lack of deft finishing in the second leg of last year’s last four loss to Madrid and Haaland has been brought in to solve that.
Ancelotti is well aware of the threat Haaland will bring but insisted it is not just the striker that makes City “unstoppable” at the moment. Speaking of Haaland, he added: “He’s very dangerous. He’s incredibly impressive when it comes to scoring goals, that’s obvious.
“Talking about Haaland means not just talking about one player, but also about a complete team that attacks and has lots of ideas... Our game plan isn’t just to stop Haaland, but rather to stop a team that seems unstoppable. But I think it’s possible for us. We can win.”
Asked if City have changed their style of play with Haaland in the side, Ancelotti responded: “They’re a more complete team now. Last year they had a very dangerous forward in Gabriel Jesus, but he was very different to Haaland. Now, they can even play a long ball game.
“In many matches that’s given them an advantage. That doesn’t mean they have changed their style. They are well-organised defensively and good in possession.
“Our game plan isn’t to stop a single player. It’s to stop a whole team, especially when they have the ball. Haaland is really important, but focusing only on him would mean forgetting about others.”
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