Ancelotti in a tight spot as Real Madrid face the risk of forfeiture vs Mallorca amid injury woes | OneFootball

After suffering yet another defeat at the hands of Barcelona, Real Madrid will be looking to return to winning ways as they take on Mallorca tonight.

However, Real Madrid approach this game with a slew of injuries and an unusually thin squad, which leave Carlo Ancelotti in a tricky situation.

Indeed, with nine first-team players out injured and Aurelien Tchouameni suspended, the Italian coach has had to call up several youth players just to complete the matchday squad.

Of the 21 players Ancelotti has summoned for the game, only 12 belong to the first team. Two of them are goalkeepers, with Andriy Lunin also being ruled out due to a fresh injury.

In any case, this leaves just 10 outfield players from the senior side available of which now Brahim Diaz has also been ruled out.

Real Madrid must have seven first-team players

According to MARCA, it will be imperative for Real Madrid to have at least seven players belonging to the first-team if they are to avoid a match suspension.

Injury woes continue to mount for Carlo Ancelotti (Photo by Alex Caparros/Getty Images)

That is according to the rules set by the Spanish Football Federation, requiring each top-flight club to field and maintain at least seven players from their registered first-team squad on the pitch throughout the match.

If that number drops below seven at any point – due to injury, red cards, or substitutions – the game could be forfeited or result in disciplinary action, as teams are not allowed to make up the difference with youth players.

Moreover, the same rules restrict the number of youth or reserve team players allowed on the field at the same time to a maximum of four, except in exceptional cases involving government orders or state emergencies.

This puts Ancelotti in a tight spot. With so few senior players available, every substitution will need to be carefully calculated to avoid breaking the seven-player rule.