Real Madrid's starting eleven for the season's final battle against Barcelona comes with few surprises on the defensive end. Suspensions have forced Jose Mourinho's hand here - neither Pepe nor Sergio Ramos were available to him, leading him to a standard 4-2-3-1 shape featuring Xabi Alonso and Lassana Diarra (Sami Khedia is injured) as the holding players with a standard four-man back line consisting of Marcelo, Raul Albiol, Ricardo Carvalho, and Alvaro Arbelo.
Barcelona Vs. Real Madrid, 2011 UEFA Champions League Semifinal: Madrid Lineup
And then things get interesting. Kaka and Gonzalo Higuain are handed starts in what looks like it could be a huge roll of the dice by Mourinho. It makes sense to include both of them - after all, the previous attacking plans hadn't worked, but there's the very real possibility that neither of them is anything like effective today. Kaka will, at least, be flanked by Angel di Maria and Cristiano Ronaldo. It'll be very interesting to see how he handles Sergio Busquets in the centre of midfield.
Real Madrid (4-2-3-1): Iker Casillas; Marcelo, Raul Albiol, Ricardo Carvalho, Alvaro Arbeloa; Xabi Alonso, Lassana Diarra; Angel di Maria, Kaka, Cristiano Ronaldo; Gonzalo Higuain.
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