Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti is considering playing Federico Valverde ahead of one of his established midfield trio in order to match Chelsea’s energy in the middle of the pitch, according to Marca.
After the Champions League quarter-final draw last month, Ancelotti made it clear: “Last year everything was physical, they [Chelsea] ran over us.”
Zinedine Zidane was in charge of the Spanish side in last year’s semifinal defeat, and he opted for Casemiro, Luka Modric, and Toni Kroos in midfield in both legs.
The three experienced midfielders are still widely regarded as one of the best midfield trio in Europe, but it was pretty clear that they had a hard time competing with N’Golo Kante and Mason Mount’s energy in midfield, particularly in the second leg at Stamford Bridge.
Ancelotti, according to Marca, is now looking at potential solutions to avoid a repeat of last year’s defeat, and Valverde is among the options.
The former Chelsea manager would not be particularly happy with losing either Kroos or Casemiro in his starting line-up, but he knows that Valverde is the player who can “give him the best performance” against Chelsea, Marca added.
Thomas Tuchel, on the other hand, might have prepared for the crucial midfield battle against the La Liga leaders on Wednesday, despite his insisting otherwise.
Neither Kante, Mount, Jorginho, nor Mateo Kovacic played 90 minutes in the shock defeat to Brentford on Saturday.
Last season, Tuchel opted for a 3-5-2 formation in both legs against Zidane’s Real Madrid, with Jorginho, Kante, and Mount, who had more freedom than the former two, in midfield.
Obviously, Kante stole the show and was named the man of the match on both occasions, but Jorginho’s composure and Mount’s off-the-ball work rate also played a big part.
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