With Real Madrid. Announced as unavailable for around 20 days, Carlo Ancelotti’s key player might return earlier than expected: a new development has emerged in Spain.
He has been one of the most utilised players in the Real Madrid squad since last season. In Madrid since 2022, Antonio Rüdiger has become an essential part of the Madrid system. This season, the German rock is the only player who exudes and communicates total confidence among all the defenders. With the injuries of Carvajal and Éder Militão, both ruled out for the rest of the season, the 31-year-old player has no time to rest. Unable to do without him, Carlo Ancelotti is forced to cope without Rüdiger for crucial matches, including against Atlético Madrid and Manchester City.
The good news on Rüdiger
Injured in the right hamstring last Saturday during the 22nd round of La Liga against Espanyol Barcelona, the former Chelsea player is undergoing treatment to return earlier. Declared unavailable for at least 20 days, which already rules him out of the double encounter against Manchester City in the Champions League knockout stage, Antonio Rüdiger could, however, return earlier than expected. As Relevo indicated on Tuesday, Carlo Ancelotti’s players are whispering among themselves that the muscle injury could heal in about ten days.
Contrary to the official information circulated by the club’s directors, likely out of caution, Rüdiger could indeed return to play the second leg against Manchester City at the Santiago Bernabéu. Given his familiarity with the Madrid medical staff, who have always managed to get players back from injury sooner than expected, it is highly probable that the German international will be back on the pitch after the first leg of the Champions League knockout stage next week. However, it would be unwise for the 31-year-old defender, who risks sustaining a further injury due to insufficient recovery time.
Temporary solutions for Ancelotti
If the result of the first leg is not favourable, Carlo Ancelotti will not hesitate for a single moment to play Antonio in the second leg, given the very limited options in defence at the moment. This Wednesday, in the Copa del Rey quarter-finals, we will already see the test the Madrid coach will conduct in central defence. After a long injury layoff of over a year, David Alaba has just been injured again and will miss two to three weeks of competition.
This new muscle injury therefore reduces the defensive options for the coaching staff. Given this situation, the option of young Jacobo Ramón from the reserve team is being discussed. A key player for Castilla, the 20-year-old defender (1.90m) is expected to step up to the first team and join Raúl Asensio and Aurélien Tchouaméni in central defence. If Carlo Ancelotti decides to do without the reserve player, he will have to rely on either Federico Valverde or Ferland Mendy moving into the central defensive role, which would significantly weaken this Madrid side.
For now, Asensio and Tchouaméni are well set to play in the upcoming crucial matches in central defence. The major challenge for the Madrid side in Rüdiger’s absence will be to limit the damage and avoid a defensive collapse in this second half of the season, which is likely to be very long with the back-to-back matches.
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