Ancelotti to rest ‘tired’ Real Madrid players ahead of Man City showdown

Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti said on Friday he would rest "tired” players for today’s Liga encounter with strugglers Getafe as his team prepares for their crunch Champions League semi-final meeting with Manchester City.Madrid travel to England for next Wednesday’s second leg after this week’s first leg at the Santiago Bernabeu ended in a 1-1 draw. Ancelotti listed Ballon d’Or winner Karim Benzema, Rodrygo Goes and David Alaba as walking wounded and doubtful starters against Getafe."We still have some doubts with players who picked up knocks Tuesday and have not yet recovered,” said Ancelotti. "(Ferland) Mendy and (Dany) Ceballos will return, they can play tomorrow. I won’t be taking risks as we have fresh players but it will be a very demanding match against an opponent that’s fighting against relegation.”Ancelotti added he did not know if Vinicius Junior, scorer of Madrid’s goal against City, would start but that he would feature. "The players who have doubts are not going to play and those who do play have time to recuperate,” he said.The Italian insisted however that he would field a "competitive” lineup against Getafe in a game which Madrid must win to have any hope of overhauling runaway leaders Barcelona. Ancelotti dismissed suggestions that other clubs in the relegation battle might feel aggrieved at Madrid playing with a weakened team. "We’ll try to win tomorrow with the best team possible,” he said. "I’ll try to preserve tired players but those who are available will play.”Meanwhile, Espanyol host Catalan derby rivals Barcelona tomorrow with a dual aim – earning three vital points in the battle for survival and also delaying the visitors’ La Liga title triumph. Xavi Hernandez’s side can win the league for the first time since 2019 if they emerge victorious at the RCDE stadium, an unthinkable proposition for home supporters.The Catalans can also lift the title if both second place Atletico Madrid and third place Real Madrid fail to win their matches against Elche and Getafe respectively. By contrast, Espanyol are fighting for their lives at the other end of the table, currently 19th and three points from safety with five games remaining.They were relegated in 2020 for the first time in almost three decades but immediately returned to the top flight in 2021. Espanyol became the first La Liga side to score at Camp Nou this season with a 1-1 draw against Barcelona in December, and only Real Madrid have accomplished the feat since. Joselu struck a penalty to equalise that day and the Spanish international striker warned Barcelona that despite the teams’ positions, in a derby there is a level playing field."In the first match they also came into it very strongly,” Joselu said. "They (thought they) were going to put five against us at the Camp Nou and we got a very positive result. They have a lot of advantage over us coming into the second match, but in the end, a derby is a derby and you can see it all in derbies. One side can be better and another worse, but there, all strengths are levelled out.”FixturesToday: Real Sociedad v Girona (1200), Osasuna v Almeria (1415), Villarreal v Athletic Bilbao (1630), Real Madrid v Getafe (1900)Tomorrow: Celta Vigo v Valencia (1200), Elche v Atletico Madrid (1415), Real Valladolid v Sevilla (1630), Espanyol v Barcelona (1900)Monday: Real Betis v RayoVallecano (1900)