Real Madrid News
Key Real Madrid duo could miss weekend La Liga clash against Girona – report
According to the latest update from Cadena SER, Real Madrid duo Karim Benzema and Federico Valverde remain a doubt for the match against Girona.
Real Madrid will be aiming to return to winning ways when they play Girona at the Santiago Bernabeu this Sunday. They have some injury issues heading into the game, however.
Karim Benzema, Luka Modric, Mariano Diaz, Dani Ceballos, and Valverde all missed the last match against RB Leipzig with injuries.
And while reports earlier this week indicated that the key trio of Modric, Benzema and Valverde will be back for the clash versus Girona, the latter two could still miss Sunday’s La Liga match.
Benzema did part of the training session today with the entire squad. But his involvement for Sunday’s clash remains uncertain as things stand.
The French international has missed the last two matches against Sevilla and RB Leipzig due to ‘muscle fatigue’ and Real Madrid do not wish to take any risk with their ace goalscorer.
Meanwhile, as per the update from Arancha Rodriguez, Valverde trained individually on the pitch today before continuing his training inside the gym, indicating that he did not participate in any team training. The journalist suggests that the Uruguayan international is still a doubt for Sunday’s match.
Valverde sustained an injury during the game against Sevilla last weekend and was seen departing from the Bernabeu with a bandage. At the time, it was reported that the injury is not serious and that he was expected to be back for the Girona clash.
Now, though, his involvement against the Catalan club remains in doubt.
Valverde has been in tremendous form for Real Madrid this season. The 24-year-old has lit up the stage with his energy and intensity while also adding goals to his game this season. His potential absence for another game will be a blow for Los Blancos as they prepare to take on Girona.
Modric, Ceballos and Mariano were spotted training with the rest of the squad and could be a part of the squad for Sunday.
Earlier today, Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti spoke openly about the rumours linking him to the vacant Brazil national team job.
The Italian tactician has emerged as the top target for the Selecao to succeed Tite, who was let go of after the FIFA World Cup 2022.
The president of the Brazil Football Confederation (CBF), Ednaldo Rodrigues, has made it clear that Ancelotti is the preferred candidate for the job.
Reacting to the same, Ancelotti, during his press conference today, said: “The reality is that the Brazilian national team wants me and I love it and I’m very excited about it, but then I have to respect the contract I have and I want to fulfil it.”
“I’m not surprised that there are these rumours. It doesn’t affect me, it doesn’t worry me. I’m just focused on fulfilling my duties with this club and with this team. I’m still here until Real Madrid allow me to stay.”
While the 63-year-old might be saying that he wishes to fulfil his contract at Real Madrid, which expires in 2024, he did not shy away from stating that he was happy about Brazil’s interest in him.
And now, Fabrizio Romano (h/t Madrid Zone) is reporting that the Selecao are ready to wait until June to go ahead with the appointment of Ancelotti.
While the Italian tactician remains in control at this point at Real Madrid, things could change drastically over the next couple of months.
The La Liga title looks already out of the Merengues’ hands while they are also trailing Barcelona in the Copa del Rey semi-final. If they fail to go all the way in the UEFA Champions League as well, Florentino Perez could decide to make some changes, starting with Ancelotti.
Hence, Brazil are happy to wait patiently until June and see how the situation is at that point and whether Ancelotti is available. With no major matches coming up for the Selecao until September, they can afford to wait as well.
Jon Gray
October 29, 2022 at 12:37 pm
Don’t know why anyone is mentioning Mariano as a possible player in the upcoming game. The guy is completely irrelevant to the team given his consistent poor form. It shows how dramatically a team like Real Madrid lacks depth of any kind. They need to recruit quite a few quality players in the January window of they are to stay on top of their gamein both La Liga and UEFA.