Three talking points ahead of Benfica vs Real Madrid | UEFA Champions League | OneFootball

Real Madrid take on SL Benfica on Wednesday night as part of the gala UEFA Champions League matchday where all games kick off simultaneously.

It will be a special night for Alvaro Arbeloa as Co., as they lock horns with legendary manager and former Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho who always has a special affection for the Merengues.

The Portuguese side enter the game on a mixed run of form as they have racked up three wins and three defeats in their last six games. They have, however, not been in great form in Europe as they sit in 29th place with six points after seven games.

Madrid Universal brings you three talking points ahead of Benfica vs Real Madrid.

The sole objective

There is really only one objective ahead of Matchday 8 for every top European team in the UEFA Champions League – direct qualification to the knockouts.

Amid the already hectic schedule, Real Madrid can do with any let-off, and skipping an additional round in Europe to directly qualify to the Round of 16, needless to say, would be a massive boost for Los Blancos.

In order to do so, a top-8 finish is a must and the men in white are already well placed on that front. After all, they sit in third place after seven games and are only behind Arsenal and Bayern Munich.

Normally, such a comfortable position would all but guarantee their qualification, but as matters stand, only two points separate them in third place and Atalanta in 13th position. Needless to say, a lot can change if they slip up against Benfica.

A win in Lisbon will assure them of a top-8 finish beyond any doubt, especially because not more than four teams can finish the league phase with a tally of 18 points or above. 

A defeat or a draw, however, hands a chance for the eight teams on 13 points to catch up, if not overtake them in the standings. In such a scenario, their place in the top-8 is not assured.

The objective in Lisbon, thus, will be to win at whatever the cost. Benfica will be desperate to win and propel themselves up the ladder, but Real Madrid must be alert and determined.

Asencio’s tricky situation

Asencio has been playing with pain due to an injury. (Photo by Denis Doyle/Getty Images)

Real Madrid’s centre-back situation has been a tricky one for a long time now, especially with multiple players facing fitness setbacks and uncertain periods on the sidelines.

Antonio Rudiger, for starters, was out for a significant period at the beginning of the season and is once again on the sidelines. Dean Huijsen, meanwhile, has also been on and off with his availability.

Raul Asencio’s situation, however, is completely different. The academy graduate has been largely available at the management’s disposal all season and has done well to provide cover in the department irrespective of who he has been partnered with.

He has, however, been playing with a crack in his tibia, and every game he plays aggravates the condition and potentially worsens the prognosis of his injury.

Asencio has pushed himself with the sole objective of helping the team through the difficult period, but the club has to hand him a rest at some point and he could be sidelined for a long period from then on.

The question for Arbeloa, thus, is whether he continues to risk Asencio to provide defensive stability or hands him an immediate rest to preserve him as an option for the coming months.

Every game, after all, counts massively at this point.

The right-wing dilemma

Just over a month ago, Real Madrid’s struggle over the right-wing position was that the manager had no convincing option in the position to hand the bona fide starting spot.

A lot, however, has changed since then and Arbeloa now finds himself in a tricky position.

In the team’s final games under Xabi Alonso, up until the Spanish Super Cup, Rodrygo enjoyed some much-needed resurgence and proved his value in the setup.

The player offered a great work rate off the ball and earned back-to-back starts, even threatening Barcelona’s defence in the eventual final.

Since Arbeloa, took over, however, Rodrygo has been unavailable through injury for a great part. The manager, thus, began trusting Franco Mastantuono and the Argentine star has not disappointed.

The youngster scored in Real Madrid’s win over AS Monaco and even dished out a fine performance against Villarreal where he started and controlled the game with a good defensive work rate.

Arbeloa’s big question tomorrow, thus, is whether Rodrygo or Mastantuono should start and whose contributions he values more. After all, their profiles are quite different in a direct sense.