One of the novelties of Real Madrid’s victory over Mallorca on Saturday was the lack of involvement for Eder Militao. The Brazilian defender, who is still working his way back from an ACL tear at the start of the season, was expected to start at Son Moix, but only ended up playing four minutes in injury time.
Militao’s lack of involvement appeared to suggest that he is not quite ready to start, and post-match, Real Madrid head coach Carlo Ancelotti stated that the battle would have been too physical for the 26-year-old.
With Erling Haaland and Manchester City being the opponents on Wednesday, the same could also be said for Militao on that occasion. Journalist Antonio Romero told Carrusel Deportivo stated that the smart thing would be for the defender to start on the bench.
“It’s not a question of him being worse. It’s a matter of having broken a cruciate and having been unavailable for eight months. Ancelotti stifled Haaland with two centre-backs (in the first leg). In this final stretch of the season Militao will accumulate minutes, and on Wednesday, he will be a substitute. Logically, he’s not there to fight Haaland.”
It does seem very likely that Real Madrid will go for Antonio Rudiger and Nacho Fernandez as their starting centre-backs in Manchester, with Aurelien Tchouameni suspended. Militao’s time could come later in the Champions League, if Los Blancos manage to progress against the reigning champions.
