A first place finish in Group F on the line, James Rodriguez will be given the start against Borussia Dortmund in Wednesday night's big match-up in the Champions League at the Estadio Santiago Bernabeu. After admitting that his current situation is unsustainable and a problem, Zinedine Zidane will grant the attacking midfielder a rare opportunity, one which he must take full advantage of if he is to remain with Los Blancos despite all the signs after the January transfer window. As a result, Isco will watch from the sidelines, as the Frecnh boss doesn't like playing Isco and Rodriguez together in midfield since the team becomes unbalanced defensively.Los Blancos end the year with the FIFA Club World Cup, two important matches remain, one against Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League and a league encounter with Deportivo La Coruna, and the former is of great importance if Real Madrid are to win their group. Defending the title, Zinedine Zidane's squad know how important it is to finish top of the group, and must beat Dortmund at home to achieve that feat. While in previous editions of Europe's elite competition an easier draw was assured for those that finished first, that is no longer the case this time around.
Manchester City and Bayern Munich, for example, both finished second, leading to all sorts of conspiracy theories on whether Madrid should even try to finish top in the very first place. Zidane, as coach, and Sergio Ramos, as captain, have dispelled those rumours, as the Undecima winning club seek to equal Leo Beenhakker's unbeaten record, which was achieved by the famed 'Quinta del Buitre' squad in 1988/89. Casemiro makes his way back into the line-up, whereas Thomas Tuchel will be without Mario Gotze and Raphael Guerreiro, two key pieces of his XI. All eyes will be on Pierre Emerick Aubameyang, whose hasn't hid his interest in wanting to join Los Blancos, but for now, he'll have to focus on getting the result for his current club.
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