Real Madrid have announced that they will travel to Glasgow for a pre-season friendly with Rangers on July 25 as the news accidentally leaked by Ianis Hagi on social media a few days ago. The glamour match against Rangers will be their first pre-season friendly before the start of the 2021-2022 season. It will be the first time that Carlo Ancelotti takes charge of Los Blancos in his second stint at the club. In a game set to be played in front of fans, it will pit the Italian against the Scottish champions, coached by Liverpool legend Steven Gerrard. Real Madrid are expected to play two or three more friendlies before they kick off their LaLiga Santander campaign against Alaves on August 14. They are first set to face Fuenlabrada this Sunday in a training game.
The most interesting part of this news is that a friendly against English Premier League giants Arsenal has already been scheduled for July 17 for Rangers but Hagi accidentally revealed an even bigger fixture on the cards. The Romanian international posted an advert for Rangers TV, urging fans to sign up for a pre-season pass to watch all the games live. What caught the eye of supporters though was the bottom of the graphic showing the friendlies in the pipeline. Besides Tranmere Rovers, Blackpool, Arsenal and Brighton there was also a Real Madrid badge on the bottom right.
The last time Rangers and Real Madrid met in a competitive game was during the 1963/64 season, when Los Merengues romped to a 7-0 aggregate win in the European Cup knockouts. Gerrard will take his side into the Champions League third qualifying round this term, as a result of winning the Scottish Premier League last season. It may be the first official pre-season match for Real Madrid but at the same time, this will be Rangers’ last pre-season game of the summer, so both teams will reach the game with different needs as the Scottish side will try to reach their best form while Madrid will only focus on improving their physical condition.
Glasgow Rangers also explained that “ticketing information will be communicated in due course”, meaning that fans will likely be allowed in the stadium. After winning the Premiership title in front of an empty Ibrox last season, Steven Gerrard's side are gearing up for the return of their fans as coronavirus restrictions begin to ease.
Coach Carlo Ancelotti will likely be forced to play that game without most of his crucial starters, who will rejoin the squad in a few weeks after playing in the UEFA Euro. It will be a good opportunity for the youngsters to make a statement and prove their worth as Madrid keeps trying to trim the roster before the start of the season. However, Real Madrid have also announced they may have a full squad available from next week - meaning the likes of Luka Modric and Gareth Bale could be strutting their stuff at Ibrox.
Players competing at Euro 2020 were given extra time off for a holiday after two gruelling seasons. However, Madrid had no players in the Spain, Italy, England or Denmark squads competing in the semi-finals at the tournament and that means their internationals will return to Valdebebas next week. That means the Croatian Luka Modric could be back in action in Glasgow barely a month after breaking Scotland hearts with his wonder goal at Hampden.
Welsh star Bale may also be involved under new manager Carlo Ancelotti in a squad packed with Galacticos. Karim Benzema, David Alaba, Raphael Varane and Isco may well be involved in what is sure to be a tough test for the Premiership champions. However it still seems difficult for the senators to play a full match. Ancelotti will probably focus on the youngsters and the players that have not played too much during the last campaign.
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