© EuroFootball.com
Madrid's "Real" attacking leader, Portuguese Cristiano Ronaldo, suffered a foot injury in the UEFA Champions League match against Dortmund's "Borussia" and will miss Saturday's "Primera" match against Madrid's "Atletico".
Not only is this match already intriguing because it involves the two best teams in Madrid, but the outcome could determine the second place winner of the "La Liga" championship.
With 71 points after 32 matches, the "Real" players are only three points ahead of "Atletico", but a victory could widen the gap with their opponents. If "Atletico" wins, the intrigue will last until the last round of the championship, as the teams will be tied in points and there will be five matches left until the end of "Primera".
Furthermore, if "Real" loses this match and the championship leader, "Barcelona," wins against "Athletic" Bilbao, the Catalans will secure the crown of "Primera".
In the match against "Atletico," not only Cristiano Ronaldo, but also defenders Marcelo and Alvaro Arbeloa, and midfielder Michael Essien, will be unavailable. However, Essien may recover in time for this match. There is also a question mark regarding Arda Turan in the "Atletico" team, who has also suffered an injury.
"Los Bancos" coach Jose Mourinho's assistant, Aitor Karanka, stated that the best preparation for the upcoming match against "Borussia" next week would be a victory over "Atletico": "We will have to play at 120% and maintain a fast pace for the full 90 minutes. We need to step onto the field with the right attitude and only think about winning."
This will not be the last encounter between these teams this season - on May 17th, "Real" and "Atletico" will face each other in the final of the Spanish Cup (Copa del Rey) at the "Santiago Bernabeu" stadium.
