Alvaro Arbeloa announced his first starting XI after taking over as Real Madrid manager from Xabi Alonso earlier this week.

of meringue In just over an hour, they will clash with second-division side Albacete in the round of 16 of the Copa del Rey, away at the Estadio Carlos Belmonte, but the starting XI has been confirmed and some interesting players have been selected.

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The big news is that young midfielder Jorge Sestero, who Arbeloa considers Spain’s best young number six, will start as Real Madrid’s pivot midfielder.

of La Fabrica This product is in partnership with Federico Valverde and Alda Guler in the middle of the park.

Meanwhile, fellow academy candidate David Jiménez will take over as right-back, while Fran García will slot in on the left in the absence of Alvaro Carreras, who is currently resting.

Dean Huyssen and Raul Asensio will start at centre-back, replacing Thibaut Courtois in the cup matches to protect goalkeeper Andriy Lunin.

Up top, Gonzalo Garcia will start the attack, with Kylian Mbappé unavailable. Franco Mastantuono also got a rare start on the right wing, and Rodrigo also did not feature. Vinicius Jr. maintains his position on the left wing.

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