Alaba third Madrilenian victim of a cruciate ligament rupture, Tchouaméni tipped to replace him

2023-12-18 10:19:20

Real Madrid’s injury list continues to grow. After Thibaut Courtois and Eder Militao, a third Madrilenian ruptured his cruciate knee ligaments this weekend: David Alaba. The Austrian defender, who started Sunday in the Merengues’ victory against Villarreal (4-1), collapsed on the pitch after 35 minutes of play and had to be replaced by Nacho Fernandez. A new blow for Carlo Ancelotti, who must now do without two of his central defenders.

“Three crosses in four months, it’s incredible, it had never happened to me before,” regretted the Italian coach after the meeting. There is nothing we can do other than what we have done so far: hang on. We are achieving more than everyone thought. The team hangs on, fights and plays well because they show extraordinary commitment. This is the only way to compensate for injuries. »

However, solutions will have to be found to compensate for this new loss. There are only two professional central defenders left in the Madrid squad: Antonio Rüdiger and Nacho Fernandez. A little short for a club which plays on several tables and which must defend its first place in the La Liga standings (Real Madrid could already fall to second in the event of Girona’s victory this Monday evening against Alavés).

Carlo Ancelotti already has an idea of ​​what he can put in place. One of the options is French and is called Aurélien Tchouaméni. Entering the game this Sunday in the 79th minute to replace Toni Kroos, the midfielder could help out in central defense for the coming weeks, before Real Madrid begins looking for a replacement during the winter transfer window. “He is our first choice,” assured Ancelotti. Even though we don’t want him to play like that, it’s an emergency moment, he can do it. » Real Madrid is also still without Vinicius (thigh), Camavinga (knee), Guler (thigh) and Carvajal (calf).

For David Alaba, it’s a different type of challenge that presents itself: getting treatment quickly to return to the field before Euro 2024, during which he must face France with his Austrian teammates. Captain of this team, the former Bayern Munich player is valuable in central defense and in the locker room. He now has less than seven months to return to his best level.