Celta de Vigo played on Thursday evening the first leg of the semifinals of the Copa del Rey against Alavés. The Galician team didn’t get a good result because the game finished with a goalless draw. Therefore, Celta have to travel in Wednesday to Vitoria to score at least one goal and qualify to the great final of Copa del Rey, presumably against FC Barcelona.
For this reason, Eduardo Berizzo, Celta de Vigo coach, has already announced that he’ll make some changes in the line up for the game against Real Madrid: “We’ll value the tiredness of the team, but for us the game on Wednesday has priority, so we can imagine the game on Sunday with changes”, Berizzo said in the press conference after the game against Alavés.
Celta are trying to qualify for the third time in the history to a Copa del Rey final, a tournament that they have still to win. For this reason, Berizzo has been prioritizing Copa del Rey ahead of La Liga, where they are currently in the 8th position, 4 points behind the European positions. For instance, when Celta played against Real Madrid in Copa del Rey, Berizzo put against Real Sociedad and Leganés a team full of players who are usually on the bench.
Iago Aspas hasn’t played in the last two games in La Liga and he’s Celta’s star. He’s expected to be on the bench, and some other players like Pione Sisto or Giusseppe Rossi should start in the attacking line. Berizzo usually makes a lot of changes in the defence, as Sergi Gómez, Fontàs or Planas have had some opportunities recently due to the tiredness of the usual defenders, Cabral -now injured- and Roncaglia.
For this reason, Real Madrid should expect a lower quality team in La Liga. It’s a good opportunity for Los Blancos to get the three points and claim ‘vendetta’ after the Copa del Rey KO.
