Real Madrid have failed to win in their last two games in all competitions which is why it's understandable that some football fans are now doubting their strength to beat Villarreal tonight but let's also not forget that Kylian Mbappe didn't start in any of these past two games. The France international starts tonight and that I think is a huge advantage to Real Madrid so my prediction is a straight win for Carlo Ancelotti's men.
https://x.com/realmadrid/status/1842612896804536767
Madrid starting eleven has been released, Mbappe and Vinicius lead the front line using a 4-1-2-1-2 formation, perhaps this is an experimental formation that Ancelotti wants to try, especially to stabilize the attack line by focusing on Mbappe and Vini so that Bellingham will be a shadow striker in the middle because the midfielders are handled by Modric and Valverde. This rotation should be effective because it provides a fuller left and right side without having to compete with Mbappe and Vini.
There has been no doubt that at the start of this season, Ancelotti’s experiments have been quite frequent, in terms of the starting eleven, tactics, and formation. It seems that he is trying to discover the formula through which he can maximize the potential of star players like Mbappe, Vinicius, and Bellingham. This 4-1-2-1-2 formation, or rather the intention on balancing the line of attack, is by focusing their play through Mbappe and Vini as very fast attackers with Bellingham behind playing as a shadow attacker. Ancelotti appears also to have wanted to ensure a solid midfield regarding this experiment because the two central midfielders have excellent distribution as well as defensive qualities. A process like this should be carried out when the season starts, more so when an increasing number of real tests have to be done before entering the most decisive time of the year.