A solid opening day victory for Spanish giants Real Madrid on Saturday was marred by an alarming blow on the personnel front.
For those who may have missed it, Carlo Ancelotti’s troops marked their return to action a short time ago.
With sights set on dethroning arch rivals Barcelona as La Liga champions over the season ahead, Real made the trip to San Mames, for a meeting with Athletic Club.
And, when all was said and done, such endeavours on the part of Los Blancos got off to the perfect start.
This came as goals on the part of Rodrygo and Jude Bellingham guided the evening’s visitors to the right side of a 2-0 scoreline.
In the process of netting a fine debut goal, meanwhile, England international Bellingham also managed to etch his name into the history books.
3 – @BellinghamJude 🇬🇧 is the third youngest player to score in his @LaLigaEn debut for @RealMadridEn ⚪️⚪️ in the 21st century (20y 44d) after @RodrygoGoes 🇧🇷 (18y 259d in 2019 v Osasuna) and Eduardo @Camavinga 🇫🇷 (18y 306d in 2021 v Celta de Vigo). Hey. pic.twitter.com/QVV2u0GVXI
— OptaJose (@OptaJose) August 12, 2023
As alluded to above, though, an otherwise solid opening day’s work for Real Madrid was soured considerably by a blow on the injury front.
The Blancos star to have picked up an issue at San Mames? Eder Militao.
Early in the 2nd-half of action on Saturday, stopper Militao went to ground clutching his knee, and in evident pain.
Upon the Brazilian being tended to by the visitors’ medical team, it was subsequently decided that he was in no condition to continue, culminating in his departure from the pitch in tears.
Speaking to the media post-match, Carlo Ancelotti was therefore unsurprisingly asked for the latest on Militao’s wellbeing.
And the Italian’s response proved an altogether concerning one, with Ancelotti having confirmed that Militao has suffered a sprained knee, albeit with an injury as serious as a ‘torn ACL’ having not yet been ruled out:
Carlo Ancelotti: “Militão has suffered a sprained knee. It doesn’t look good” 🚨⚪️ #RealMadrid
“Torn ACL? We can’t rule out anything”, says via @GuillermoRai_ pic.twitter.com/cOPlTqdg8a
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) August 12, 2023
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