Real Madrid’s starting line-up has more or less been settled all season, with a ten of the eleven spots in the first team occupied by a regular starter. The one anomaly to that is the right side of the attacking trio alongside Karim Benzema and Vinicius Junior.
Earlier in the season it looked as if the battle for that final spot was being won by Marco Asensio after a series of good performances. However his poor performance in the away leg against Paris Saint-Germain raised doubts, which only grew after Rodrygo Goes made a big impact in the second leg.
Along with Eduardo Camavinga, Rodrygo was substituted on in the early stages of the second half, which gave Los Blancos verve and speed they were lacking up until that point. That went down well with the dressing room leaders, which was evident when Benzema sent away his teammates so that Rodrygo could take a free-kick in the PSG match.
After the match, the video of Luka Modric celebrating the victory included praise for Rodrygo – saying “F****** great Rodry, like that every time,” as noted by Marca.
Rodrygo has a good opportunity to start El Clasico, having recovered from a knock earlier in the week. He has three assists in four appearances against Barcelona and has never tasted defeat to the Catalans.
