Benzema is rarely injured, but when he does, he shows the seams of a Madrid without guaranteed replacements. At least for Ancelotti. When the French has been missing, the alarms have sounded loudly and the blackboards have drawn authentic bobbin lace. patches -some truly amazing- with enough authority to be chosen before pure forwards like Jović or Mariano. so it was with Asensio (San Mames), bale (Ceramic) and Isco (Bernabeu vs Granada). None was convincing. And someone will have to be chosen against Barcelona.
Because the ‘ballot’ is repeated this Sunday, nothing more and nothing less, than in a Classic (9:00 p.m., Movistar LaLiga). “He is 34 years old and this is something that could happen”he pointed Carletto at the press conference this Saturday, alluding to the drop in Benzema for his discomfort in the left calf. It is the fourth injury he has suffered this season; two of them were minor (a week of rest and return to the ring), one somewhat longer (left adductor on the shores of Christmas; he missed the Cup elimination in Bilbao) and now, this one, which does not worry and allows him to target Stamford Bridge. Ancelotti’s options for the Clásico are as follows.
bale
A priori, it seems one of the favorites for the position. He has played one game this season as a center forward, at La Cerámica (0-0) and, although he did not put on a great performance, he only needed a couple of flashes to show the undeniable quality he has. For many, despite being the player with -probably- the most talent of all the candidates, his attitude discredits him to be a starter. This season he has played only 270 minutes, of which 188′ were in the first three days of the League. Then it disappeared; and Vinicius appeared. The ‘surpass’. Since La Cerámica he has only played 3 minutes in Paris.
Mariano
Some information indicates that It has been Ancelotti’s test in the last training. He has always gone from not playing … To starting and roaring. It is a diesel, from nothing to everything in thousandths. It already did, precisely, in the last Classic which was played at the Bernabéu, when he closed out the victory with a goal in added time (2-0). This course has only started in two games (Martínez Valero and Alcoy), playing 184 official minutes. You haven’t scored yetbut he did give an assist: to Vinicius to open the can against Elche.
Jović
It comes from hitting rock bottom: against Mallorca, for the first time, he did not even enter the call. Just like Marian he has only started twice this season, against Inter (last day of the Champions League group stage) and against Elche (round of 16 in the Cup). But in the scoring section he beats his competitor… By the minimum. Luka has a goal, the one he signed in San Sebastián to shore up a long-suffering victory against Alguacil’s team (0-2). He has played 473 minutes spread over… 17 games! That is, when he plays, he enjoys 27 minutes on average.
Asensio
It was the surprise before the Athletic at the crossroads of Copa. With Benzema injured, Ancelotti chose him as false nine ahead of Jovic (Mariano was also short). The experiment came out regular; he was seen out of place, without scoring chances and very far from being a reference, which logically is far from his characteristics. Despite this, I would guarantee that Of all the options, it is the one that would arrive with the most filming: 1,625 minutes between all the competitions. He is also the highest scorer, with ten claws so far in the campaign. And he is the clear favourite.
Isco
He has played center forward twice this season and, the first, it was precisely as Plan B before the opportunity that Asensio had in San Mames. In the 60th minute he became the reference of a team that did not hit the key. However, he repeated in the League against grenade and left no bad feelings. He was a long way from being a killer of the area, but as a reference of the game and axis of connection with the bands he showed a remarkable level. The problem, in his case, is the opposite of Asensio: since that night he has not played for a minute. It would come out without filming. This season he has played 342 minutes and started three games, all of them in the league.
Rodrygo
Ancelotti dropped it at a press conference (“I’ve also tried it once…”), but it seems like the most remote option. He has never come out as a center forward in the league and, although it has once occupied that demarcation in a specific manner and for a short period of time, due to characteristics doesn’t seem to fit. His strength is the overflow and speed, intrinsic characteristics of the band. And precisely where he is lagging is facing goal: he has only scored two goals in 1,518 official minutes.