Cristiano Ronaldo did not look a happy man when he was substituted by Zinedine Zidane at the weekend. Real Madrid were leading 2-1 at that point, with Ronaldo enduring a frustrating evening, and that frustration only increased when he watched from the bench as Las Palmas equalised to consign the European champions to a second straight draw in the La Liga.
Ronaldo, who only recently returned from the injury suffered at the Euro 2016 final, will hope that bit of rest has done him well and he has a happier time in the Champions League when Real Madrid face Borussia Dortmund at the Signal Iduna Park in Group F on Tuesday.
While Ronaldo slowly returns to his best after a long layoff, Zidane will still have to do without the services of Casemiro, the defensive midfielder, and Marcelo, the left-back.
That means Mateo Kovacic is likely to play in the three alongside Toni Kroos and Luka Modric, while right-back Danilo is expected to take the left-back slot, unless Zidane decides to take a risk with Fabio Coentrao, who has not played a single game for Real Madrid since returning from the Monaco loan. Pepe, who had a wonderful Euro 2016 campaign for Portugal, has also been included in the travelling party, but it remains to be seen if he is fit enough to play.
With Karim Benzema coming on from the bench and scoring for Real Madrid at the weekend, Zidane has to choose between the Frenchman and Alvaro Morata. Considering the quality of the two strikers, that is a great headache to have, and what Zidane needs to decide is, against this fast, dynamic Dortmund side, which of the two is the better option to play with Gareth Bale and Ronaldo.
Another decision for Zidane to make is if he brings Keylor Navas, who returned to the squad at the weekend, back into the starting XI. Kiko Casilla has been decent in goal in the Costa Rican's absence, and with Navas yet to play a single game so far this season, the Real Madrid manager might be wary of playing him in such an important game.
Thomas Tuchel will not be able to call upon the services of Marco Reus and Erik Durm, but the Dortmund manager will be happy to see Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Adrian Ramos, Andre Schurrle and Marc Bartra all training without too many problems.
The four players were doubts for the game against Real Madrid, but having trained, Tuchel is confident the quartet will be available for selection for the big Champions League clash.
"Everyone who trained this morning completed the session without any problems," Tuchel said. "Unless something unusual happens, we expect them to train again and will factor them into our planning."
Expected lineups: Borussia Dortmund: Burki; Piszczek, Papastathopoulos, Bartra, Schmelzer; Castro, Weigl; Guerreiro, Gotze, Dembele; Aubameyang.
Real Madrid: Navas; Carvajal, Ramos, Varane, Danilo; Kroos, Modric, Kovacic; Bale, Benzema, Ronaldo.
