Carlo Ancelotti considering defensive experiment for Arsenal-Real Madrid

Real Madrid face Arsenal in the Champions League on Tuesday night with plenty of problems going into the first leg of the quarter-finals at the Emirates. Arsenal have lost several key elements in their backline, including Gabriel Magalhaes and Riccardo Calafiori, and while Real Madrid have got several players back from injury, they themselves are still down to the bare bones.

Los Blancos have been improvising since Dani Carvajal went down with a cruciate ligament injury, with Lucas Vazquez and Fede Valverde sharing duties at right-back. Eder Militao has also been ruled out for most of the season, leading to the rise of Raul Asencio in central defence. However Ferland Mendy, another starter from last season, has also been dealing with injury issues, and has been ruled out of the first leg against Arsenal.

For the most part, Fran Garcia has been used in his stead, but with Real Madrid keeping just two clean sheets in their last 16 games, and the general sense that Garcia is not always trusted in top games, there is little confidence in the position. That much was in evidence after Eduardo Camavinga started at left-back in their Copa del Rey semi-final second leg against Real Sociedad. However Camavinga struggled, and Relevo say that Carlo Ancelotti is considering an experiment against Arsenal.

The final minutes of Real Madrid’s defeat to Valencia saw David Alaba play left-back, and provide good service from the flank. The Austrian defender has almost exclusively played as a centre-back since arriving in Madrid, but has struggled after his own knee injury kept him out for 13 months. Alaba spent the early part of his career as a left-back though, and Ancelotti is wondering if he might be best served by returning the veteran there against Arsenal.

In theory Alaba would give Real Madrid a much more solid presence defensively and in the air, albeit one with less pace than Garcia. He also has a better range of passing and is more used to building out from the back. Real Madrid’s left-back will likely face Bukayo Saka at some point, one of Arsenal’s biggest threats, but it should be noted that Alaba has shown signs of rust.