Manager says Real Madrid will “do everything” to have the forward back as soon as possible
Xabi Alonso has admitted he has no idea when Kylian Mbappe will return to the pitch after sustaining a knee injury.
Mbappe was diagnosed this week with a sprain to his left knee, ruling him out of Sunday’s La Liga match against Real Betis. He is also a serious doubt for next week’s Spanish Supercopa in Saudi Arabia, where Madrid are due to face Atletico Madrid in the semi-finals.
“We’re going to try to push the time down,” Alonso said. “We’ll do everything possible to make it as short as possible, so he can be ready as soon as possible. But when is that? That’s the question, I don’t know.”
Mbappe has been the biggest figure in Real Madrid’s squad on the pitch this season, scoring 29 goals in 24 appearances for Los Blancos. He has struggled with fitness in recent weeks, notably sitting out the Champions League defeat to Manchester City in December.
But the player is unquestionably a huge miss for Alonso and the Spaniard said the decision on Mbappe’s availability would be taken game by game.
“In every game we make an assessment, based on how the player feels, and we take decisions based on the necessities of the game,” Alonso said. “Now we’ll see. We’ll do everything we can to have him back as soon as possible.”
The last time Madrid played for an extended period without Mbappe was during the Club World Cup last summer, when the player sat out most of the competition due to gastroenteritis. Madrid progressed to the semi-finals before being demolished by Paris Saint Germain, with Mbappe present.
“It was flexible, with the players we had,” Alonso said. “We have to look for the best way of fitting together the pieces. We’ll miss Mbappe for sure, not just his goals, but the influence he has.”
