Real Madrid is into the Copa del Rey Round of 16 against Osasuna on Thursday and the match comes from the Santiago Bernabeu at 3:30 PM ET and streaming online and on the radio and the match is a big one for both sides and comes after the club won its last two La Liga matches and against Olimpic in the fourth round of the Spanish tournament.
The club has some positive news coming into the match, as Xabi Alonso signed a two year contract extension with the team and while their rivals in Barcelona ended up getting Lionel Messi back for their match, Real Madrid is looking to get into the next round after hosting the first match before the second leg of this set.
The 32 year old Alonso was set to have his contract expire at the end of this season and now he will be extended through the 2016 season and the contract will be up in June of that year. Alonso said that he was very excited to remain with the club and it came as the team had to fight off interest from a number of clubs, including Liverpool. Manchester United, Man City as well as Chelsea, Paris Saints Germain and Juventus among others and now all of that gets put to rest.
Check here for the live coverage of Real Madrid for the match.
Here is a look back on a story from Reuters.com on Real Madrid ahead of the match on Thursday.
Real Madrid have launched an internal inquiry after their Argentina winger Angel Di Maria was seen to grab his crotch while he was being substituted in Monday's 3-0 La Liga win at home to Celta Vigo.
Di Maria, who was replaced by Gareth Bale midway through the second half at the Bernabeu and was whistled by the home fans as he trudged off, insisted it was "a natural gesture" and said he apologized if anyone had found it offensive.
The incident was widely debated in the Spanish and Argentine media on Tuesday and prompted further speculation that Di Maria, who has made fewer appearances since the arrival of world record signing Bale, might be sold either in the January transfer window or at the end of the season.
"I did not want to do anything towards either the supporters or the coach as was being claimed," the 25-year-old was quoted as saying on Real's website (www.realmadrid.com) on Tuesday.
"It was a natural gesture that any man does, and all the more so when he is running," he added.
"You do it a lot on the pitch. On television you can see that it lasts a millisecond. It's nothing.
"It's not like I was doing it on purpose for an extended period of time."
Di Maria said he was "in very good shape and very happy" at Real and that coach Carlo Ancelotti had faith in him.
He added that he agreed with the club's decision to launch an enquiry as it would help resolve the matter.
"I think it is right, not only for those who have opened the enquiry but also for me so I can explain the situation and what it (the gesture) was," he said.
(Reuters)
