BARCELONA.- He Real Madrid will have one last preparation for the Champions League final by hosting Real Betis in an inconsequential duel to conclude the season LaLiga Spanish on Saturday.
Madrid won its 36th league title three weeks ago and since then coach Carlo Ancelotti has rotated his squad to reduce the risk of injury to his starters.
Ancelotti left Jude Bellingham and Vinícius Júnior on the bench in last weekend’s 4-4 draw against Villarreal and will surely do the same against Betis before the European final against Borussia Dortmund on June 1 in London.
The most important decision for Ancelotti before the Champions League final will be between goalkeepers Andriy Lunin and Thibaut Courtois.
Lunin stood out as Courtois’ replacement after the Belgian suffered a torn ACL in August. But Courtois recently returned to the field and has played three games in the Spanish league. Lunin returned to goal in the draw against Villarreal.
Saturday’s duel will be Toni Kroos’ last at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium. The 34-year-old German midfielder said this week that he will retire after the European Championship.
Everything sentenced in LaLiga:
There will be no drama on the 38th and final day in Spain because the European tickets have already been decided and Almería, Granada and Cádiz were relegated.
Barcelona, Girona and Atlético de Madrid will join Madrid in the Champions League. While the Basque teams Athletic Bilbao and Real Sociedad will be in the Europa League and Betis will play in the Conference League.
Xavi Hernández will direct his last game with Barcelona after the club announced the dismissal of the former player after a season without titles.
Source: AP
