Real Madrid News
Rival watch: RB Leipzig trio set to miss Real Madrid encounter
Real Madrid will be gunning for yet another victory – their eighth of the season in all competitions – when they take on RB Leipzig in the UEFA Champions League on Wednesday night.
Los Blancos go into the game with three players unavailable as Karim Benzema, Lucas Vazquez and Eder Militao have been left out of the squad due to injury issues.
Like Real Madrid, RB Leipzig, too, are carrying several fitness problems in their squad and will be without as many as three players for the trip to the Spanish capital.
As reported by MARCA, RB Leipzig will have to make do without Spanish international Dani Olmo, versatile defender Lukas Klostermann and midfield mainstay Konrad Laimer for the clash against Real Madrid.
Among the trio, Olmo’s absence is a major blow for Leipzig given the value he brings to the table with his versatility and attacking nature.
Laimer is also a key piece of this Leipzig setup and is the latest one to pick up an injury. The Austrian international is expected to be sidelined for several weeks after damaging his ankle ligament during Leipzig’s 3-0 win over Borussia Dortmund this past weekend.
With Laimer unavailable, Kevin Kampl and Xaver Schlager could form the midfield double pivot for Die Roten-Bullen on Wednesday night.
And while they will miss the likes of Olmo and Poulsen, there is plenty of threat in the attacking unit with Timo Werner, Christopher Nkunku, Dominik Szoboszlai and Andre Silva.
Yussuf Poulsen, who had been out with a thigh injury, returned to the bench against Dortmund this weekend and will provide more depth in the final third.
Leipzig have not made the best of starts to the new season and have already changed managers, replacing Domenico Tedesco with Marco Rose. They will hope to build on their win against Dortmund and pick up all three points at the Bernabeu.
Arda Guler’s Real Madrid stint has not gotten off to the start he would have hoped to have given the expectation that preceded the transfer.
Having joined in the summer after Real Madrid outbid their competition to win him over from Fenerbahce for a 20-million-euro fee, buzz was high as the winger was expected to slot into the team quite seamlessly, albeit on a rotational basis.
Unfortunately for the 18-year-old, he has been constantly marred by injuries since completing the move.
Reports have stated that after Guler picked up his third injury since his move, Real Madrid have been concerned and want to take things slow with the player to ensure he is fit as soon as possible after an injury to his quadriceps this time.
The Turk is yet to make his competitive debut for the club, and Real Madrid even sacked their medical chief in November, in light of their injury crises since the beginning of the season.
No loan deal for Guler
However, according to Fabrizio Romano in a recent YouTube video, he states that Madrid maintain full trust and patience in the youngster.
Despite his bad luck with injuries, the latest of which he is scheduled to return from after Christmas, the Galacticos have no intention of loaning out Guler to Turkish clubs despite lots of speculation of them doing so of late.
Romano states that Madrid remain firm on not shaking things up too much with the squad, and they want to keep their roster stable, including Arda Guler.
They want to extend their full support and protection to the player as he aims to return to full fitness and finally make his bow for Madrid either by the end of this month or in 2024.
