Zidane confident Real will overcome the absence of Casemiro

Andy West 06:40 24/09/2016
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  • Quietly effective: Casemiro.

    Zinedine Zidane is confident Real Madrid can return to winning ways at dangerous Las Palmas tonight despite the absence of ‘Mister Victory’ Casemiro.

    The Brazilian international, who will be absent for at least a month with a leg fracture, has won all 14 of the league games he has started under Zidane, whose team have only won seven of their 11 La Liga outings without Casemiro.

    The importance of the defensive midfielder, whose elevation into the starting line-up last season coincided with the team’s upturn in fortunes, was highlighted on Wednesday when Madrid drew 1-1 with Villarreal – failing to win for the first time this season as Casemiro started his spell on the sidelines.

    His absence is magnified by the fact that Zidane does not possess a natural alternative for his position in front of the back four, with the squad’s other midfielders better suited to more attacking roles.

    Although Zidane did not divulge how he is intending to line up his side tonight, he said he has already decided how he will cater for the absence of both Casemiro (right) and compatriot Marcelo, who is out for three weeks with a calf strain.

    “I know who will replace them,” he said. “It’s not a problem. Of course, I am always worried when we have injuries, but there’s nothing you can do about it and we have a deep squad.”

    At Espanyol, where Casemiro sustained his injury last weekend, Zidane reshuffled his midfield by positioning Toni Kroos and Luka Modric in a more withdrawn ‘double pivot’ system, with James Rodriguez playing further ahead as a traditional ‘number 10’.

    Zidane could also stick to the flat and narrow three-man midfield he has favoured, with Kroos in Casemiro’s usual central position and James on the left-hand side with Modric in his accustomed right-sided role.

    Another option would be to use Mateo Kovacic in the centre in place of Casemiro, while Isco is also hoping for more playing time to reignite his faltering career at the Bernabeu.

    There is better news on the injury front as goalkeeper Keylor Navas returns to the squad for the first time this season after a heel operation, and Zidane confirmed that the Costa Rican will share playing time with in-form deputy Kiko Casilla over the next few weeks.

    “Keylor is very important for us, but so is Kiko,” added Zidane. “We’ll have to see how we organise the starter for La Liga and the Champions League, but there will be rotations in the goalkeeping position.”

    At the other end of the pitch Zidane insists he is not worried by the form of superstar forwards Karim Benzema, Gareth Bale and Cristiano Ronaldo despite the trio looking out of sorts in Wednesday night’s 1-1 draw with Villarreal.

    Injury problems for all three have contributed to a meagre joint tally of just four league goals so far this season, but Zidane is convinced their top form will return as they regain full fitness.

    “The ‘BBC’ are getting better every day,” he said. “We expect a lot from them, but they know that and we are happy with their work. Of course, they can improve and score more goals, and I wasn’t happy with the first half against Villarreal but that was the whole team, not just them.”

    Hosts Las Palmas are also looking to return to form following a 4-1 loss at Real Sociedad on Wednesday.

    “I hope that defeat doesn’t affect us,” coach Quique Setien said. “The first goal hurt us very much. We lacked a bit of aggression and discipline and that weakened us a lot in defence. The team is going to be committed for every ball and in each move, that is what we can promise.”

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