Real vs. Atletico: Issues and Decisions That Will Shape Madrid Derby Cup Game

Real Madrid have a two-goal deficit to overcome when they host Atletico Madrid on Thursday in the second leg of their Copa del Rey round of 16 tie.

Atletico were 2-0 victors in last week’s match at the Vicente Calderon courtesy of second-half goals from Raul Garcia and Jose Maria Gimenez. Madrid created very little against their strong and well-organised hosts. Despite their post-match complaints, they didn’t do enough to get a result.

The win was Atletico’s third consecutive triumph over their local rivals in all competitions. With two goals to play with, they will be confident of progressing to the last eight.

Here are the issues and decisions that will shape Thursday’s Copa del Rey encounter between Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid.

Atletico Madrid's Defensive Solidity

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Atletico Madrid held firm during the first leg at the Vicente Calderon, with the centre-back pairing of Diego Godin and Jose Maria Gimenez particularly impressive.

Per Madrid-based journalist Nicholas Rigg, Carlo Ancelotti described Atletico as the best defensive team in Europe in his pre-match press conference. The statistics certainly suggest that his side are likely to struggle to overturn their two-goal deficit.

Per data from Soccerway, Atletico have maintained all 12 of the first-leg leads they have held across Copa del Rey, Europa League and Champions League knockout ties since Diego Simeone took charge in December 2011.

In addition, Atletico have lost by two or more goals in just seven of their 63 matches in all competitions since the start of 2014. Two of those defeats were by a score of three to one, which would see Atletico go through on away goals if repeated on Thursday.

While that would seem to make a turnaround a daunting task for Madrid, they can at least take some solace in the fact that they were able to defeat Atletico 3-0 at home and 2-0 away in last year’s Copa del Rey quarter-final.

Further belief could also be garnered from Barcelona’s three-goal haul against Atletico on Sunday.

Real Madrid's Attacking Options

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Atletico Madrid have generally done an excellent job of stifling Cristiano Ronaldo in recent clashes between the sides. While he has been a regular scorer from the penalty spot, he has only scored once from open play in his last nine appearances against Los Colchoneros.

Carlo Ancelotti will therefore need to find a way of freeing up space for his star forward on Thursday.

Much scrutiny is also likely to be placed on the performance of Gareth Bale.

The Welshman was jeered by sections of the Bernabeu crowd after missing an excellent opportunity in the home victory over Espanyol on Saturday, in which he failed to either square the ball to a free Ronaldo or find the back of the net himself.

Despite his visible frustration at the time of the incident, Ronaldo played it down during Monday’s Ballon d’Or ceremony. Per AS, he urged Madrid’s supporters to be "nice" to Bale on Thursday.

Bale could find his starting place in threat if he performs as poorly as he did in the first leg and will therefore be under pressure to make a decisive contribution. It is only likely to take a couple of mistakes for the Bernabeu crowd to get on his back.

And Jese Rodriguez will be waiting expectantly in the wings to come on and make an impact if Bale fails to do so. Per Madrid-based journalist Nicholas Rigg, Carlo Ancelotti has confirmed that the youngster is fully fit and raring to go.

Atletico Madrid's Set-Piece Efficiency

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Jose Maria Gimenez rose high above the Real Madrid defence to head home Koke's corner for the second goal in Atletico Madrid's 2-0 victory at the Vicente Calderon, and Madrid will again have to be wary of Atletico's efficiency from set pieces on Thursday.

Diego Simeone's side have scored from a dead-ball situation in four of their last five matches against their local rivals in all competitions and currently lead La Liga with 19 set-piece goals so far this season, as per WhoScored.com.

An away goal would further strengthen Atletico's chances of progressing to the last eight. Form would suggest that set pieces will provide their most likely route to goal.

The Strength of the Starting Lineups

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Carlo Ancelotti appears keen to give his side the best possible chance of turning around the tie. Per Alvaro de la Rosa of AS, the Italian is set to field his strongest available outfield players on Thursday.

Keylor Navas will remain in goal in place of Iker Casillas but Cristiano Ronaldo, Dani Carvajal and Pepe are all expected to start after being left out of the XI for last week’s first leg.

Atletico Madrid will also field a near full-strength team. Per AS, Miranda is expected to return in place of Jose Maria Gimenez, while Koke will also start after coming off the bench to good effect during the first leg. Jan Oblak will continue in goal.

Fernando Torres worked hard but made little impression on the match at the Vicente Calderon and is expected to lose his starting place to Mario Mandzukic.

Diego Simeone’s only major doubt is over the participation of left-back Guilherme Siqueira, who is suffering from a muscle strain. Lucas Hernandez—who performed commendably during the first leg—or Jesus Gamez will deputise if the Brazilian fails to make it.