Following their 2-0 win over Girona in La Liga, Real Madrid started preparations today for their upcoming Copa del Rey semi-final against Real Sociedad.

The Merengues take on Imanol Alguacil’s team away at the Reale Arena on Wednesday night in the first leg of the semi-finals before hosting them in the second leg at the Santiago Bernabeu in April.

Federico Valverde to be rested again?

Ahead of Wednesday’s huge contest, AS reports that Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti is considering resting key star Federico Valverde once again.

This comes after the Uruguayan international did not train with the rest of the group today and instead did indoor work, focusing on recovery and physiotherapy

It must be noted that Valverde was rested for the entire game against Girona this past weekend, for the first time since May 2024, after he had played against Manchester City through discomfort and taking pain-killer injections.

There was a moment when Ancelotti was set to introduce the key midfielder into the game against Girona but Vinicius Jr.’s goal changed the scenario and the manager opted against throwing in the Uruguayan.

The Real Madrid manager will make a final decision on Valverde’s involvement on Tuesday, during the team’s final training session before they travel to San Sebastian to take on La Real in the cup semi-final.

Valverde has once again been one of Real Madrid’s best and most consistent players this season, delivering the goods on a constant basis, be it as a midfielder or an emergency right-back in the absence of Lucas Vazquez.

Up until Sunday evening, the 26-year-old had featured in all of Real Madrid’s matches this season, even contributing with eight goals and six assists.

Real Madrid unlikely to spend big on key position in the summer window – report

For a couple of seasons now, Real Madrid’s lack of depth in the centre-back department has been exposed due to serious injuries to key personnel.

Eder Militao and David Alaba suffered ACL injuries last season, leaving Carlo Ancelotti short-handed in the position.

This season, Los Blancos did not sign a replacement for Nacho Fernandez, who left in the summer while Militao has suffered another ACL rupture and Alaba missed the entirety of the first half of the season due to his previous injury.

Furthermore, Antonio Rudiger is dealing with chronic knee issues and neither him nor Alaba are getting any younger, leading to the Spanish champions being linked with top defenders like William Saliba heading into the summer.

No major investments planned

However, according to MARCA, Real Madrid do not have any plans to make a major investment in a new central defender before the start of the next season.

• The Merengues plan on counting on their current resources, more so after the emergence of several young prospects from within the club’s academy this season.

After all, Raul Asencio has established himself as a first-team player in his breakthrough season and is set to be rewarded with a new long-term contract imminently.

Jacobo Ramon and Diego Aguado have also made their official first-team debuts and have shown potential. Moreover, Joan Martinez will also recover from his ACL injury and be an option for next season.

All of this has reshaped Real Madrid’s outlook on the centre-back department ahead of next season, with the club feeling that the position is now well-covered.

As such, spending a significant sum on another defender does not appear to be a priority at this time.

However, the final decision will likely depend on how Alaba progresses following his recent comeback as well as Militao’s recovery, considering he has now had two knee surgeries in two years.