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It was strange to see Real Madrid scheduling an away friendly match in Norway right three days after returning to Madrid from Germany. Still, this game will prove how ready Nacho and Varane are to play in the absence of Ramos and Pepe, given that the failed the last time they played together -- 4-0 against Atlético de Madrid --.
Cristiano Ronaldo, Sergio Ramos, Pepe, Karim Benzema and Fàbio Coentrao are all out of this one with physical problems. Benítez said in his pre-match press conference that Ronaldo and Ramos are not injured, meaning that they could play if this was not a friendly match. Lucas Silva stayed in Madrid as he is set to leave the club.
The spotlight will be on Martin Ødegaard. The local hero will play his second game in this pre-season, as Benitez confirmed. A decision has not been made about his future, and it seems that he could stay with Castilla for another year, something that could hurt his potential because of how difficult the Spanish Segunda División B is for young prospects. Castilla needed to promote to Segunda last season, but they failed and now Martin Ødegaard, Borja Mayoral and Marco Asensio might pay the price.
Match Information
Time converter at worldtimebuddy.com
Date & Time: Sunday, August 9th (15:00 local time, 09:00 EST).
Venue: Ullevaal, Oslo, Norway.
Projected Real Madrid XI: Casilla, Danilo, Varane, Nacho, Marcelo, Kroos, Modric, Isco, Bale, James, Jesé.
Players to watch: Ødegaard, Jesé, Danilo.
TV Information: Real Madrid TV, Cuatro (Spain), Others.
Stream information: Real Madrid App, Others.