Real Madrid head coach Carlo Ancelotti will need to make changes to his attack if it is part of a team that faces Rayo Vallecano in La Liga on Saturday.

Kylian Mbappe had just started to find his feet with fantastic goals against Girona and Atalanta in his last two games.

However, just 35 minutes into the final midweek Champions League game, the Frenchman requested a substitution and then a hamstring injury was confirmed that will keep him out of Vallecas and potentially the Intercontinental Cup final on December 18.

“Mbappe is nothing very serious,” Ancelotti stressed at his pre-match press conference on Friday afternoon.

“He won’t be at the game (tomorrow) but he will travel to Qatar and see if he can take part in the (Intercontinental Cup) without risk.”

This season there has been a lot of negativity about last season’s treble winner. But thanks to the fact that FC Barcelona lost a six-point lead at the top of the table, Madrid can climb back to the top of the table by one point with a win at the expense of Rayo.

For this reason, Ancelotti said he is “more optimistic” than before and he is also looking forward to the game against Valencia on January 3, which comes at a “difficult time”.

“The commitment and attitude of everyone, the individual quality… It was a complete game (against Atalanta) and it gives us optimism for the future, for the next games that start tomorrow. We have a very important game on Wednesday, but “First we have to play a good game tomorrow,” demanded Ancelotti.

As I said, Mbappe’s injury means Ancelotti will have to make changes in attack. Once the Brazilians return to full fitness, he will deploy Vinicius Jr. on the left and Rodrygo in Mbappe’s central striker position, while the front line will be completed by Brahim Diaz.

In midfield it’s a trio of Jude Bellingham, Fede Valverde and Aurelien Tchouameni, whose return to the middle of the park sees breakout star Raul Asencio make a comeback in defence.

The academy product teams up with Toni Rüdiger and the centre-back pair are flanked on the right and left by Lucas Vazquez and Fran Garcia to protect Thibaut Courtois’ goal.

Starting XI of Real Madrid vs. Rayo Vallecano: Courtois; Vazquez, Asencio, Rüdiger, Fran; Tchouameni, Valverde, Bellingham; Brahim, Rodrygo, Vinicius