Luka Modric and Federico Valverde are among the Real Madrid stars that return to face Chelsea at the Santiago Bernabeu tonight.
Carlo Ancelotti rested a number of his key men over the weekend as Real fell to defeat against Villarreal, a result that left them trailing Barcelona by 12 points and further emphasised that it is the Champions League that has their full focus.
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The Real boss confirmed it will be a swift return to full strength for his side, as they look to make the most of home advantage in the first leg of this quarter-final tie.
“In terms of the Champions League, it’s a defeat that doesn’t change our mood for Wednesday’s game, which will be different,” Ancelotti said after the match against Villarreal.
“I may repeat the same 11 from the Camp Nou. I made a lot of rotations today because the game against Barcelona demanded a lot from us physically and mentally.”
Eder Militao, Modric, Valverde and Toni Kroos all return to the Real starting lineup, while Dani Carvajal comes back in at right-back with Lucas Vazquez dropping to the bench. Antonio Rudiger is also on the bench against his former club, along with Eden Hazard. Another former Blue in Thibaut Courtois starts in goal.
With Ferland Mendy still out injured, Ancelotti opts for Eduardo Camavinga at left-back ahead of Nacho. Up front, Karim Benzema and Vinicius Jr will once again be the key men - Benzema scored four times against Chelsea last season, including a sensational hat-trick at Stamford Bridge.
Real Madrid XI: Courtois, Carvajal, Militao, Alaba, Camavinga, Valverde, Kroos, Modric, Rodrygo, Benzema, Vinicius
Subs: Lunin, Lopez, Vallejo, Nacho, Hazard, Asensio, Odriozola, Vazquez, Tchouameni, Ceballos, Rudiger, Mariano
