Real struggling
Los Blancos are set to return to action tomorrow night.
Zidane’s men will welcome struggling Alaves to the Bernabeu for a La Liga clash, in search of a bounce-back result.
Real have looked some way short of their best of late, amid a concerning spell of just 1 win from their last 5 across all competitions.
The latest of these came on Wednesday night when, altogether embarrassingly, the capital giants were sent packing from the Copa del Rey by minnows Alcoyano.
Alcoyano hold on! 👏
An upset for the ages as Real Madrid go crashing out of the Copa del Rey 😬 pic.twitter.com/glLLdRyetF
— Premier Sports 📺 (@PremierSportsTV) January 20, 2021
Los Merengues’ efforts to retain their La Liga crown, meanwhile, are not exactly on track as things stand, either, with city rivals Atletico Madrid’s downing of Eibar last night having seen Diego Simeone’s men reestablish their 7-point lead at the summit, whilst maintaining a game in hand over the chasing pack.
Zizou ruled out
As such, it goes without saying that Real simply can’t afford anything but all 3 points come the full-time whilst versus Alaves in 24 hours’ time.
As outlined above, however, ahead of Saturday’s clash, the Spanish champions have today been dealt a pair of concerning blows on the personnel front.
The first has seen manager Zinedine Zidane forced into self isolation, on the back of confirmation that the Frenchman has returned a positive test for Covid-19:
Official Announcement: Zidane#RealMadrid
— Real Madrid C.F. 🇬🇧🇺🇸 (@realmadriden) January 22, 2021
The 2nd blow, meanwhile, comes on the personnel front.
In a further announcement a short time ago, Madrid revealed that key midfielder Fede Valverde has picked up a thigh injury.
The Uruguayan’s exact recovery timeline remains unclear, but it appears safe to assume that Valverde is set for at least a couple of weeks out of action:
Following tests carried out today on Fede Valverde by the Real Madrid Medical Services, he’s been diagnosed with a muscle injury to the adductor longus muscle in his right thigh.
Valverde medical report.#RealMadrid
— Real Madrid C.F. 🇬🇧🇺🇸 (@realmadriden) January 22, 2021
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