Real Madrid were able to get past Getafe on Wednesday night, thanks to a goal from Arda Guler.
Their next task will not be as simple - for what it is worth, the win against Getafe was hardly simple - as Real Madrid face archrivals Barcelona in the final of the Copa Del Rey on Saturday night.
Real Madrid have lost both games to Barcelona in embarrassing fashion, with an aggregate scoreline of 9-2 over the two games. It is actually shocking just how much Real Madrid sucked against their rivals, and there is a lot of work to be done if they want to be a third time Lucky.
In the match against Getafe, Real Madrid lost two more players in Eduardo Camavinga and David Alaba. Ferland Mendy is already out, which means there is only one player who can actually start at left-back for Real Madrid, and Carlo Ancelotti confirmed that after the win.
He said: "Fran García is the only left-back option to face Barcelona."
Honestly, I prefer Garcia over Alaba any day of the week right now. At the very least, you get some sort of pace with Garcia, which does go a long way in the attempt to stop some of the best players in the world. Alaba does not have that, and given how he got roasted against Bukayo Saka last week, it is probably for the best that he is not playing.
Camavinga has a good track record against Barcelona, although one of the more recent games where he played as a left-back, he got roasted too. He was in good form, though, which makes it a tough loss to bare. Camavinga would have done really well at left-back.
Ferland Mendy has been injured for a few weeks now, and although Ancelotti said he will be back for the final, this was not confirmed in the press conference after the Getafe win. Regardless, even if he is available, it would make more sense for him to ease into the lineup.
Garcia will have to produce the best game of his life to contain a player like Yamal, and even that might not be enough. As much as I hate to admit it, Yamal is a generational player, and the only way to stop a player like that - who is in such good form as well - is by having an all-time performance.
Ancelotti has never been able to trust Fran at left-back in big games, which explains why he started Alaba over him in the two losses against Arsenal. Hopefully this would be the time for the Spaniard to make a claim over that position for future big games.
It is a tall order, though. Real Madrid would have to contain Yamal as a team, but if he is left one-on-one against his Spanish counterpart, it could be problematic for Real Madrid. Not because Fran is bad, but because how good Yamal is, or at least, can be.