02:45 March 19, Real Madrid vs Schalke: Warm-up waiting for El Clasico

With a 6-1 away win in the first leg and a decisive El Clasico in La Liga this weekend, Real Madrid will only see tonight's rematch with Schalke as a warm-up before the big...

Bale (right) and his teammates will not have to spend much effort to beat Schalke.

This weekend's El Clasico is very important for Real Madrid. Besides its traditional significance, the victory also helps coach Carlo Ancelotti and his team put one foot on the throne of La Liga 2013/14. At that time, they will be able to cut the tail of their Catalan rival with a gap of 7 points. Real only has to worry about Atletico Madrid - a task completely within their reach because this city club is not a formidable opponent in the long-term race.

Real will not waste their energy on welcoming Schalke tonight. In fact, this is just a formality match because the White Vultures won 6-1 in the first leg right in Germany.

Real will let some of their key players rest to prepare for El Clasico. Coach Ancelotti has paid a lot of attention to Real's fitness this season in general, and for the big match with Barca in particular. In recent training sessions, he let all the players who played in the 1-0 win over Malaga in La Liga last weekend rest. The White Vultures only had 9 reserve players and young talents on the training field.

Besides Arbeloa, Khedira and Benzema being injured, coach Ancelotti will likely leave some key players such as Pepe, Marcelo, Modric, Di Maria and possibly Bale out. Carletto can be completely confident in changing a series of positions because the players who replace him are all very classy. When hosting opponents like Schalke, Coentrao, Illarramendi, Isco and especially Jese are more than capable of helping Real complete the assigned task. It was an easy victory, not only not losing much energy, but also maintaining the form and spirit that is rising.

Obviously, Real will not have difficulty completing the above goal. Besides quality substitutes, the White Vulture will still retain key positions that play a backbone role in the main frame, such as Ramos, Alonso, Ronaldo and possibly Bale.

Notably, this is also a match at the Bernabeu. Note that Real have won all 16 of their recent home matches in all competitions. At the same time, their two rotating goalkeepers, Diego Lopez and Iker Casillas, have only conceded twice at home in 2014.

Schalke are also no longer interested in the rematch against Real. Defeating the White Vultures at Bernabeu is an impossible task for coach Jens Keller and his team at this time, let alone winning by more than 5 goals.

The German team had to give up this match to focus on the Bundesliga, where they are fiercely competing for a place in the Champions League next season (currently ranked 3rd in the rankings). Besides the long injury list, coach Keller will likely have to let some key players rest, such as Huntelaar Hoewedes or Obasi.

Therefore, Real will not have difficulty in having an easy victory against Schalke despite the team lacking many key players.

NUMBERS
2- In 25 times hosting teams from Germany, Real won 19, drew 4 and lost only 2 matches.
7- In 12 away matches in Spain, Schalke won 2, drew 5 and suffered 5 defeats, but did not win in the last 7 matches.
30- Real are unbeaten in their last 30 matches in all competitions, including 25 wins. That is the best streak in coach Carlo Ancelotti's career.
32- Real have scored in 32 consecutive Champions League games. They now share the record of scoring 20 goals in the group stage with MU (1998/99) and Barca (2011/12).

INFORMATION
Real won 2, drew 1, lost 2/5 recent matches according to Asia. Schalke won 2, lost 3/5 recent matches according to Asia.

Real won 3, drew 1, lost 1/5 recent home matches according to Asia. Schalke won 3, lost 2/5 recent away matches according to Asia.

All 9 of Real's recent matches and 8/9 of Schalke's recent matches have had goals in the first half.

Real have won all 16 of their recent home games. Schalke have won 3 and lost 2 of their last 5 away games.

SPECIAL
No more than 3 tables
8/9 of Real's recent home matches have had no more than 3 goals. 9/10 of Schalke's recent away matches have also had no goal feasts.

According to Bongdaplus