The first Cristiano Ronaldo Derby between Ronaldo’s former club, Real Madrid, and his new club, Juventus, will take place on Saturday in America’s capital. Unfortunately, it looks like the man of the hour is set to miss out on the festivities. Ronaldo has only recently returned to training after an extended break this week, and it’s very unlikely that he will make the trip across the pond for an International Champions Cup match against his old mates. This should still be a very intriguing affair though.
The International Champions Cup brings some of the top clubs in Europe to cities around the world that normally don’t get to see top flight football. The match will take place at FedEx Field iN Washington, DC at 6:05 p.m. ET on Saturday, August 4, 2018. Catch every moment of the match live on ESPN News.
International Champions Cup Betting at BookMaker.eu
Juventus +212
Real Madrid +116
Draw +262
Over/Under 2.5 and 3
Last Matches
Juventus has been very active over the last few weeks. The Serie A giants have played in three separate friendlies, and they have made multiple splashes in the transfer market too.
On the pitch, Juventus started their ICC schedule with a match against Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich. Bayern was a decent favorite heading into that match, as they were using many of their starters, and Juventus weren’t given much of a chance. However, Juventus was able to emerge victorious thanks to the defense employing bend-but-don’t-break tactics, and errors at the back that led to a brace for youngster Andrea Favilli.
In their next match, the club almost fell to Benfica. The two teams played a relatively slow first half bereft of much action, but then Benfica grabbed a 1-0 lead midway through the second half. It looked like Juventus would loss until a bit of magic from Luca Clemenza leveled the score in the 84th minute. From there, Juventus was able to grab the victory after winning the penalty shootout 4-2.
We just saw Juventus in action outside of the ICC too. The club squared off against the MLS All-Stars in Atlanta, where Favilli once again found the back of the net. The two played a very even match, going to penalties after a 1-1 finish in full time. Again, Juventus was able to emerge victorious after winning 5-3 in the shootout.
Real Madrid has only played one ICC match so far this summer, and it ended in a loss for the club. On Tuesday, Real faced Manchester United in Miami and they brought many of their offseason additions with them. Vinicius Junior and Alvaro Odriozola featured in the match, as well as starters like Gareth Bale, Isco, Nacho, and Tony Kroos. Two first half goals from Manchester United did them in though, resulting in a 2-1 loss.
Real Madrid Player to Watch
Many will be watching the play of Vinicius in this one. The young Brazilian has some of the most impressive highlight videos you will ever see, and he showed flashes in the loss to Manchester United. However, he was too quick to go to ground quite a few times and gave us an early contender for dive of the season too. With his talent there is no need for theatrics, and it will be interesting to see whether or not he makes an improvement there.
Juventus Player to Watch
This match will also be a reunion for midfielder Sami Khedira. Khedira played for Real Madrid for five years before joining Juventus in 2015, and he is familiar with many of the players on the roster. He will want to be at his best against his former teammates, and he could play a big role with so many players yet to return to the lineup for Juventus.
Free Soccer Betting Pick
I’ll go with Real Madrid in this one because they will have more first choice players available, and they will have had more rest.
International Champions Cup Odds: Real Madrid 3, Juventus 1
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