Real Madrid suffer major setback ahead of Champions League tie against RB Leipzig
Los Blancos have a 100% win record in this year’s campaign
Real Madrid suffered a major setback ahead of their Champions League encounter against RB Leipzig as star player Jude Bellingham is ruled out, confirmed the club in a press release.
Bellingham was substituted during Madrid’s 4-0 win over Girona in a La Liga match. The Englishman scored two goals to put his side in the driving seat before being taken off in the 57th minute.
“After the tests carried out today by the Real Madrid Medical Services, our player Jude Bellingham has been diagnosed with a high-grade sprain in his left ankle. Pending evolution,” Los Blancos said in a brief press release.
As per sources close to the club, the Englishman is expected to be out for two to three weeks, which will see him miss four matches — RB Leipzig (UCL), Rayo Vallecano, Sevilla, Valencia (all league).
With two goals against Girona, the 20-year-old became the first midfielder in Real Madrid’s history to score 15 goals in a single La Liga season.
Madrid’s star Vinicius Junior, who opened the scoring against Girona with a thunderbolt from outside the box and then assisted Bellingham with an outside-the-foot pass, praised the Englishman after yet another stellar performance in an important match.
“Jude is a star, he scores a lot of goals and I hope he can keep going,” Vinicius told Real Madrid TV. “Bellingham has been the best this season, we’re doing things well and we’re happy because we’re a family.”
Carlo Ancelotti is already having a tough time dealing with injuries and with the latest setback, it will be interesting to see how the Italian sets his team up to cover for the 20-year-old's absence.
Remember, Bellingham was signed by the Whites for a record €103m fee and the 20-year-old has been justifying the massive price tag ever since making his debut with the 14-time Champions League winners.
With 20 goals and eight assists, Bellingham tops the goalscoring chart of the club and has seven more than his nearest rival in the team, Rodrygo, who has 13 to his name.
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