Albacete and Real Madrid are set to face off later tonight in their Round of 16 clash in the Copa del Rey, but this is not the first time the lower-division club have had their name linked with Los Blancos.
After all, the two clubs indirectly were involved in business in the last summer transfer window when Real Madrid’s defender Jesus Vallejo left the club at the end of his contract and signed for Albacete where he has had prominence.
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One of the storylines ahead of tonight’s game, thus, was the Merengues finding a familiar face in the opposition lineup but Mundo Deportivo reveals that it will not happen anymore.
Out through injury
Indeed, as reported by the Spanish outlet, Vallejo has not made Albacete’s squad list to face Real Madrid later today despite the team waiting until the very end. He has not recovered and will not be able to play against his former team.
While Real Madrid will not read too much into his absence, it does indeed come as a missed opportunity for the player who could have had a good tussle against his former teammates. Fitness, however, denies him that opportunity.
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Vallejo ruled out. (Photo by Juan Manuel Serrano Arce/Getty Images)
The 29-year-old defender scored a vital equaliser for his team in the 93rd minute of their game against Celta Vigo in the last round and thus helped take the match to penalties where Albacete knocked out the Galician side.
His absence, needless to say, is a massive blow for the opponents in that sense. He joins the list of absentees for the hosts which already includes Higinio Marin, Jon Garcia, and Antonio Puertas.
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“Football has these things, it is an unexpected sport. After the victory against Celta, anything could happen and so it has.”
“Let’s hope they arrive very tired from the Super Cup and we can prepare a good game here at home,” he said in a recent interview when asked about facing Real Madrid.
Given that Real Madrid enter with a new coach and fresh off a defeat to Barcelona, they will be vulnerable and Albacete will more than believe in their chances on the night, exactly as claimed by Vallejo in the above interview.
