Forward received treatment on the wrong leg before scans of the correct knee revealed the problem
Real Madrid staff misdiagnosed Kylian Mbappe after mistakenly scanning the wrong knee following an injury in December, and the player continued to play with the problem.
The 27-year-old forward initially underwent an MRI on his right knee, despite the issue affecting his left. With no problem detected, Mbappe went on to feature in three matches while still experiencing inflammation.
A subsequent scan of the correct knee revealed a partial posterior ligament tear. On 31 December, Madrid released a medical update describing the issue more generally as a knee sprain and saying they had a “conservative” recovery plan for the forward.
Mbappe’s injury first emerged after Madrid’s 2-0 La Liga defeat to Celta Vigo on 7 December, when Mbappe suffered a blow to his knee. He was an unused substitute against Manchester City three days later but then played every minute of the club’s remaining matches in 2025, matching Cristiano Ronaldo’s record of 59 goals in a calendar year.
After the winter break, Mbappe kept receiving treatment on his left knee before the correct diagnosis was confirmed. He subsequently missed the Spanish Super Cup semi-final against Atletico Madrid in Saudi Arabia but returned for the final against Barcelona on 11 January, coming off the bench in a 3-2 defeat.
Mbappe later featured regularly, scoring nine goals across eight appearances, although his workload was managed under new head coach Alvaro Arbeloa.
“We’re taking it day by day,” Arbeloa said of Mbappe’s fitness before the match against Getafe. “It depends on how he’s feeling. We want him back at 100 per cent.”
Mbappe missed several matches in early March and travelled to Paris for further tests alongside Madrid medical staff. He has since returned to action, making substitute appearances in a 2-1 Champions League win over Manchester City and a 3-2 league victory against Atletico Madrid.
