Jose Mourinho told to drop struggling Real Madrid superstar for Atletico Madrid derby

Jose Mourinho told to drop struggling Real Madrid superstar for Atletico Madrid derby Real Madrid are preparing to face Atletico Madrid in La Liga at the Metropolitano, and Jose Mourinho’s side will be keen to get one over their city rivals. A trip to the home of Los Colchoneros has proven to be a bogey fixture for Los Blancos in recent seasons. It is not often that you see Real Madrid show a pattern of struggling at a particular ground against a particular opponent. Mourinho will be keen to set the record straight this time around and send a statement with a victory tonight, and he has some key decisions to make on the starting line-up. The Portuguese tactician has been urged to make a huge selection call for Real Madrid’s derby against Atletico Madrid, with journalist Ivan Martin arguing that Vinicius should lose his starting place to Yan Diomande. Mourinho told to drop Vinicius According to Defensa Central , Martin outlined the changes he would make for the Metropolitano clash, and the most striking one involved Vinicius. “I would take Vinicius out and put Diomande in, but that’s not going to happen,” Martin said. Dropping Vinicius for a derby would represent an enormous decision from Mourinho, and Martin himself expects the coach to continue trusting the Brazilian. Jose Mourinho told to drop Vinicius Jr. against Atletico Madrid. (Photo by Angel Martinez/Getty Images) However, the fact that such an argument even exists is down to the poor form of Vinicius and the promising signs both Diomande and Guler showed in previous games. For Madrid, that competition should be welcomed. Vinicius remains one of the biggest attacking figures in the squad, but performances have to dictate selections. Concern over Mourinho’s Guler decision Martin is even more concerned about what Mourinho might do with Guler. “My big doubt is that Mourinho doesn’t do something stupid with Guler,” he said. The fear is that Madrid could sacrifice creativity in an attempt to match Atletico physically. Guler has become an important source of creation and could be particularly valuable when Madrid need to escape pressure and find Kylian Mbappe in dangerous positions. Martin expects Tchouameni and Valverde to provide the midfield base. “I think Tchouameni and Valverde are going to play,” he said. Bernardo Silva unlikely to get a starting berth Martin, meanwhile, said that Bernardo Silva was not in the kind of form to start such an important game. “Bernardo isn’t ready to play that game. His World Cup was already poor, he has never regularly played in that position and I don’t think he’s ready to play a match of that intensity,” Martin said. Bernardo Silva has not had a great start to life at Real Madrid. (Photo by Florencia Tan Jun/Getty Images) Jose Mourinho has some interesting choices to make around some guaranteed starters for the Atletico game. Starting Diomande over Vinicius would be the boldest. However, it is almost impossible for Mourinho to consider that as a possibility. Keeping Guler alongside a powerful Tchouameni-Valverde base could offer a compromise between creativity and physical security. It remains to be seen what decisions Mourinho makes and how they influence the first Madrid derby of the season.