After a week full of international action, focus now shifts back to club football this weekend, with Real Madrid all set to resume their La Liga campaign on Saturday.
The reigning Spanish and European champions are all set to take on Real Sociedad at Anoeta, with the club hoping to put pressure on league leaders Barcelona.
The defending champions currently trail their arch-rivals by four points and keeping that in mind, Carlo Ancelotti will not settle for anything less than three points this weekend.
However, Ancelotti has suffered multiple injury blows heading into this encounter. Aurelien Tchouameni picked up a knock right after the international break whereas Dani Ceballos picked up an injury just before. Jude Bellingham is still not fit either.
Madrid Universal will take a look at the potential Real Madrid lineup that will take on Sociedad this weekend.
Defence
The defensive unit will be a major headache for Ancelotti in the lead-up to this game.
Fortunately for the Italian, Eder Militao has been cleared fit and is part of the squad despite his recent knock. He can, therefore, start alongside Antonio Rudiger at the heart of the Real Madrid backline.
Ferland Mendy was another player to pick up a knock during the international break. But even he has recovered and made it to the squad and should thus be fit enough to start against Sociedad.
Mendy should occupy the left-back position as usual, whereas Dani Carvajal will be in charge of providing the width on the opposite flank.
There should be no change in goal, with Thibaut Courtois looking for his third clean sheet of the season.
Real Madrid do, however, have a new goalkeeper in the squad, in the form of Sergio Mestre, who has been given the nod ahead of Fran Gonzalez.
Midfield
Moving to midfield, Ceballos has been ruled out due to his injury, which could be a major blow for Real Madrid.
In addition to him, Real Madrid are also missing Eduardo Camavinga, Jude Bellingham and Aurelien Tchouameni due to injuries.
Ancelotti, therefore, may have no option but to start with Arda Guler in the three-man midfield setup. The youngster looked good for the Turkish national team during the international break and could clinch the starting berth ahead of Brahim Diaz.
The 19-year-old is all set to accompany Real Madrid captain Luka Modric and Federico Valverde in the second line of press.
Ancelotti does have an interesting alternative in Chema, who could make a late substitute appearance in the game.
Attack
There should be no changes in the Real Madrid frontline, which will look to replicate its performance against Real Valladolid and Betis.
Kylian Mbappe bagged a brace in the win over Betis and will be hoping for a similar output in the final third.
The Frenchman, who recently secured a major legal victory over PSG, will look to combine well with Vinicius Jr. in the final third, with Rodrygo offering additional firepower.
Ancelotti has no shortage of alternatives in the attack, with Endrick and Brahim Diaz more than ready to make an impact from the bench.
