Real Madrid’s possible opponents for the Copa del Rey Round of 16

Real Madrid made easy work of Arandina at Aranda de Duero this past weekend in their first game of the 2023/24 Copa del Rey.

Rodyrgo, Brahim Diaz, and Joselu were on the scoresheet on the night as they helped the team, get over the line with a heavily rotated squad.

The result sees the team advance to the Round of 16 in the Copa del Rey. The draw is set to take place today, and Real Madrid will thus find out their next big test in the competition. Notably, not many lower-division teams have survived the Round of 32.

Thirteen of the fifteen remaining slots have been booked by teams in the Spanish first division, with not many upsets so far in the tournament.

Alaves, Athletic Bilbao, Atletico Madrid, Barcelona, Celta Vigo, Girona, Getafe, Mallorca, Osasuna, Rayo Vallecano, Real Sociedad, Sevilla and Valencia are all guaranteed a place in the next round of the competition.

The only lower-division team to have guaranteed a place in the Round of 16 are Tenerife after the Canary Islands-based side knocked Las Palmas out with a dominant 2-0 win last night.

The final spot in the competition’s next stage will be decided in the clash between Villarreal and Unionistas.

The game was underway and even reached a 1-1 stalemate at the end of regulation time but was postponed owing to floodlight failure. It will continue on Monday at 15:30 GMT.

As the Copa del Rey does not have any specific pairing conditions for the upcoming draw, Los Blancos are free to be paired against any of the aforementioned 15 sides.

The best-case scenario would be to lock horns with the only lower-tier opposition in the frame, but Carlo Ancelotti’s side will believe in their chances against most of the La Liga sides comfortably nevertheless.

The absolute worst scenario would be to draw one of Girona, Atletico Madrid, or Barcelona tomorrow and set up a virtual war at an early stage in the competition.