Osasuna vs Real Madrid
Eleven men will take the pitch on Sunday night with the possibility of having already beencrowned champions of the league, but not matter what the case may be, 25 Madridista heroes will be in attendance when Real Madrid kick off against Osasuna in Pamplona. While the hosts are on the verge of collapse and relegation, the Whites are one step away from coronation. Another date with Cibele awaits, and Madridismo has no intention of missing out.
Madridistas will be glued to their TV sets on Sunday four hours before Real Madrid even get underway at the Reyno de Navarra. Villarreal and Getafe are scheduled to kick off at 17:00, and two hours later, depending on how the Yellow Submarine fare, the Whites will know whether or not they are mathematically league champions.
Seven squad members will look on from the stands, while their 18 cohorts will be split between the bench and the starting eleven. Guti and Metzelder are definite scratches due to injury. The former, La Liga’s top assist man, has been unable to recover from a sprained left knee which prevented him from training with his teammates all week. Metzelder, who was sidelined for two months after undergoing surgery, stepped in for the midfielder by returning to group action on Thursday.
Ruud van Nistelrooy is Bernd Schuster’s best pick-up of the week. The Dutchman’s severely inflamed right ankle is history and there’s no better place to stage a comeback than the same stadium where he scored four goals last season. Also making his return is Fabio Cannavaro, who sat out last weekend’s match due to suspension.
Osasuna find themselves stuck between a rock and a hard place. While Real Madrid count down the minutes before celebrating the championship, Los Rojillos are doing their own counting… the number of points needed to avoid relegation. In order to remain in Spain’s top flight, Sunday’s hosts must tally six points in the four remaining matches; they are only two points away from severe danger. In what has been a crazy season, not even seventh place Deportivo have locked up a spot in next season’s Primera Division.
In dire need of a victory, coach Cuco Ziganda is expected to play with his usual one striker, although Portillo may get the nod over Sola and Dady. Javier Flaño could start as left-back, which would force Azpilicueta into the midfield. Delporte and Margairaz are injured and unavailable.
If Real Madrid are eager to run their victory lap, it’s not hard to imagine how anxious Osasuna are to make it to the next round still standing. Buckle your seatbelts. Two teams with completely opposite goals cross paths on Sunday at 21:00 CET.
Squad List:
Goalkeepers: Casillas, Dudek, Codina
Defenders: Ramos, Cannavaro, Pepe, Heinze, Marcelo, Torres, Metzelder, Drenthe, Salgado
Midfielders: Diarra, Guti, Sneijder, Robinho, Robben, Baptista, Balboa, Gago
Forwards: Raúl, Van Nistelrooy, Soldado, Higuaín, Saviola
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