Five Real Madrid stars facing fitness issues after Atletico Madrid clash

On Wednesday night Real Madrid repeated their favourite trick, edging past city rivals Atletico Madrid in the Champions League by the thickness of the bar. However the win, achieved after extra time and penalties did take its toll on Los Blancos.

On Thursday, Carlo Ancelotti gave the players training off, partly as a reward for their progress and permission to celebrate, and in part to ease the physical toll on his players. Even on Friday, Vinicius Junior spent time in the gym rather than out on the pitch. The Italian manager confirmed he would be available for their 18:30 CEST date with Villarreal on Saturday, but they had decided to rest the Brazilian after the exertions at the Metropolitano.

It was confirmed on Thursday that Ferland Mendy, who was taken off in the 82nd minute, had suffered a hamstring injury and would be out for the next month after tests. That has placed his presence against Arsenal in the quarter-finals in doubt. According to Diario AS, Vinicius did suffer a muscle strain against Atletico, albeit not one out of the ordinary after such a demanding game. When deciding against him training on Friday, it was also taken into account that Vinicius has two demanding trips coming up in the international break too, as Brazil face Colombia and Argentina in the South-American qualifiers.

They go on to say that Antonio Rudiger, Fede Valverde, Jude Bellingham and Kylian Mbappe are also facing discomfort of some sort. They are described as ‘at the limit’, and it has supposedly been some time that they have been playing through pain.

Bellingham has been nursing shoulder pain since last season, while Rudiger has an arthritic knee issue, which will continue to bother him down the line. Valverde recently missed two games with hamstring discomfort and Mbappe is dealing with pain in his toe and ankle.