Real Madrid missing eight players for Levante clash

Real Madrid will be missing eight first-team players for Thursday's La Liga clash with Levante.

Los Blancos will enter the contest off the back of a 1-0 defeat to Atletico Madrid at the weekend, but they secured the La Liga title at the end of last month by thrashing Espanyol.

Head coach Carlo Ancelotti rung the changes for the clash with Atletico following the team's Champions League semi-final success over Manchester City last week.

Federico Valverde, Vinicius Junior, Luka Modric, Ferland Mendy, Thibaut Courtois and Karim Benzema are all in line to return to the starting XI on Thursday night.

However, Los Blancos are still missing a number of players through injury, including David Alaba, who has recently been unavailable for selection due to a hamstring problem.

Marcelo (muscle), Dani Ceballos (groin), Isco (groin) and Gareth Bale (back) are also still absent, while Eden Hazard misses out on a spot in the squad despite recently returning to training following a leg operation.

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Marco Asensio has also been left out of the selection due to an ankle problem, while Dani Carvajal has been rested by Ancelotti, which could open the door for Lucas Vazquez to start at right-back.

The absentees in the squad mean that there are places for 21-year-old defender Mario Gila and 19-year-old attacker Peter Gonzalez.

Nacho and Eder Militao are expected to feature in the middle of the defence for Los Blancos, but it could be Toni Kroos's time to have a rest from the start, with Casemiro, Modric and Valverde potentially starting in midfield.

Ancelotti will be mindful of keeping players fresh ahead of the Champions League final against Liverpool, but Benzema is expected to start on Thursday, with Luka Jovic and Mariano Diaz bidding to earn minutes off the bench this week.

Real Madrid squad:

Courtois, Lunin, Fuidias; Militao, Vallejo, Nacho, Mendy, Gila; Kroos, Modric, Casemiro, Valverde, Vazquez, Camavinga, Peter; Benzema, Jovic, Vinicius, Rodrygo, Mariano