Three talking points ahead of Real Madrid vs Celta Vigo | Copa del Rey | OneFootball

They say time and tide wait for none. This season, the grueling schedule joins that list and waits for none as well.

Days after their gutting defeat to Barcelona, Real Madrid must drag themselves back onto the field for a crucial Copa del Rey clash that could decide their fate in the competition.

Having beaten Deportiva Minera in the Round of 32, Los Blancos made it to the pre-quarterfinals but the draw gets exponentially harder from this point. Already, they stare Celta Vigo in the eye in the last 16 and the game will be a difficult one to get past.

When the two teams met earlier this season, Real Madrid only pulled away with a narrow 2-1 win and the Galicians are well known to be giant killers when the stakes are high.

Given the home advantage, however, Carlo Ancelotti’s men will look to turn the tide and return to winning ways.

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

Moving past distraught

Defeats are difficult to move past in sports, some more than others. One of the most difficult of them all to recover from is a Manita defeat in El Clasico.

Over the years, Barcelona have recorded several embarrassing scorelines over Real Madrid, but Sunday night’s 5-2 hammering is up there is one of the worst.

After all, the margin could have been far worse had Barcelona’s goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny not been sent off as Real Madrid had no answers to the questions posed by the Catalans’ attack.

The effect of such a defeat on the team morale and dressing room dynamics cannot be understated, and it is clear that Carlo Ancelotti’s side will still be reeling under the shock of their collapse.

The clash against Celta Vigo in the Copa del Rey tomorrow, in that sense, will be more of a mental obstacle for the team to get past than a sporting result. After all, a big part of the result will depend on what version of the team turns up.

Ancelotti will be under pressure to ensure that he keeps the spirit high and sends the team out looking to make a statement win. Should the team step out as uninspired as they looked in El Clasico, Los Blancos are in serious trouble.

Time for a tactical tweak?

Ancelotti contemplating tactical changes. (Photo by Yasser Bakhsh/Getty Images)

Real Madrid’s crisis currently appears to be the unstable defence, especially with Aurelien Tchouameni and Lucas Vazquez not hitting the mark at center-back and right-back respectively.

If rumours are to be believed, however, Carlo Ancelotti sees a completely different problem and is planning a tactical manoeuvre to balance out the flaw.

According to the Italian coach, Real Madrid’s biggest problem is the presence of four attack-minded players who leave the midfield vulnerable. He is thus considering axing one of the forwards, but his approach may well backfire.

Los Blancos are indeed suffering with three forwards playing, but simply because the likes of Vinicius Jr. and Kylian Mbappe do not contribute much defensively or out of possession.

By axing Rodrygo, the manager is removing the one attacker in the squad who provides a positive output in terms of work off the ball. Bringing in a midfielder will thus not bring as much of a change as Ancelotti expects but might only dampen the attack.

It remains to be seen if tomorrow is the day the manager looks to return to a 4-4-2 system, but one hopes he reconsiders his thought process and prioritises fixing the defense first.

A trophy on the line

If Real Madrid were hoping for a mild-intensity clash to get back to winning ways and find their footing after the defeat at the weekend, they will have none of it tomorrow night.

The clash against Celta Vigo tomorrow, after all, is a direct knockout fixture as per the new format of the Copa del Rey and Real Madrid simply have no margin for error.

After forfeiting a title in Saudi Arabia on Sunday, they play another must-win clash and virtually have the trophy on the line.

A win over the Galicians will take them one step closer to the title and into the quarterfinals but a defeat would mean a second trophy lost in as many games, virtually placing the team in a pressure cooker situation.

Winning Thursday’s clash is thus a must at any cost, both from the perspective of the team’s success this season and the manager’s future. Can the men in white tread the tightrope and get the much-needed win?

Only time will tell.