Deportiva Minera vs. Real Madrid: the Copa del Rey gets underway
Ancelotti's men visit the Cartagonova stadium this evening for a single-leg last 32 match (7pm CET).
Real Madrid begin their Copa del Rey journey with Ancelotti's men making the trip to the Cartagonova stadium to face Deportiva Minera, for the first time in official competition, in the single-leg last 32 match (7pm CET).
Our team come into this match following the victory against Valencia in Mestalla that put us top of the League. Qualifying for the last 16 of the Cup is now the objective before traveling to Jeddah (Saudi Arabia) to try and retain the Spanish Super Cup title. This will be the second match in an intense January schedule for Real Madrid with matches in four different competitions.
“The Cup is an important competition and we’ll approach it with enthusiasm” said Ancelotti in the press conference. The Italian has picked a squad of 23 players for this match. One of the keys to reaching the next round will be maintaining the team's excellent attacking form, having scored in each of the last eight matches notching up 21 goals on the way.
Deportiva Minera
Our opponent reached the last 32 after firstly eliminating Tudelano (0-5) before beating Alavés on penalties at home after the match had finished 2-2. Currently, the Murcian outfit sit eighth in Group 4 of the Segunda Federación with 17 points.