Will Kylian Mbappé start?

That’s the big question on the minds of many fans and Xabi Alonso as he decides who will make the starting lineup, to be announced shortly before the Club World Cup semifinal against Paris Saint-Germain.

The French striker missed the entire group stage of the competition due to gastroenteritis, but that’s now in the past. He hasn’t started yet, but the good news for Real Madrid is that he’s already played 45 minutes and even scored.

Now, in a match of such magnitude, one would expect the new Merengue coach to position the Frenchman as the focal point of the attack, though surprises are always possible.

That’s another major unknown: whether Xabi Alonso will bench the player who scored the most goals in the tournament, Gonzalo García, a pleasant surprise in recent weeks but one who can hardly justify keeping Mbappé on the sidelines.

Gonzalo García is the Club World Cup’s goal-scoring star

The young Spanish footballer has scored four goals across five matches. In fact, it could be said that without his goals, Real Madrid wouldn’t be facing the Champions League winners in this stage. Ultimately, whether he plays or not will be a technical decision.

Real Madrid aims for a record-breaking season

Having surpassed the record for most matches in a single season—66 from the 2001-02 campaign—with the quarterfinals, Real Madrid will hit a new high of 68 matches in the semifinals against PSG. The team now has a chance to match their record for most wins in a season.

Their most successful seasons in terms of victories were 2011-12 and 2013-14, with 46 wins each. Real Madrid would tie this record with a win in the semifinals and set a new record if they conquer the Club World Cup. So far, they’ve won the European Super Cup and the Intercontinental Cup.