MADRID, Feb. 7 (Xinhua) -- The Madrid derby between La Liga leaders Real Madrid and second-placed Atletico Madrid on Saturday is the biggest game of the weekend in Spain.

Real Madrid goes into the game with a slender one-point lead over their local rivals, and four clear of FC Barcelona, who plays away to Sevilla on Sunday night.

Carlo Ancelotti has to deal with a defensive crisis, with Antonio Rudiger and David Alaba joining Eder Militao on the injury list, leaving the Real Madrid coach without any specialist central defenders in his first-team squad.

Aurelien Tchouameni and Raul Asencio are likely to form a makeshift defensive pairing, with Ferland Mendy at left-back and either Lucas Vazquez or Fede Valverde on the right.

Ancelotti tried 20-year-old Jacobo Ramon in his side's Copa del Rey win in Leganes on Wednesday, but Ramon struggled in the game, and it would be a huge risk to play him against Julian Alvarez, Antoine Griezmann and Alexander Sorloth on Saturday.

Real Madrid also has to play a vital Champions League play-off against Manchester City next week, with Ancelotti resting Kylian Mbappe and Jude Bellingham in Leganes and ensuring Vinicius Jr. and Rodrygo only played 45 minutes each.

Eduardo Camavinga should start for Madrid, but the coach will also be keen for him not to play 90 minutes after recent muscle problems.

Atletico breezed into the Copa del Rey semifinals on Tuesday night with a 5-0 win at home to Getafe, which allowed him to take key players out of the game with half an hour left to play.

Atletico also have the advantage of qualifying directly for the last-16 of the Champions League and will not have to play in midweek until the end of the month.

Diego Simeone's only problem is deciding who will replace Robin Le Normand in central defense, with Clement Lenglet likely to return to the starting 11.

A win for Atletico would lift them two points above Real Madrid and back to the top of the table and with a relatively comfortable February ahead of them. Enditem

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