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Real Madrid face defensive woes as Nacho, Odriozola ruled out with injuries

Signing Thibaut Courtois was a great addition to Real Madrid on the defensive front, Madrid have problems in their first line of defence.

Real Madrid face defensive woes as Nacho, Odriozola ruled out with injuries

Madrid, Aug 9: Signing Thibaut Courtois was a great addition to Real Madrid on the defensive front, Madrid have problems in their first line of defence.

Just a week to prepare for facing Atletico Madrid in the UEFA Super Cup and three defenders could be absent from the match in Tallinn. Jesus Vallejo, Nacho Fernandez and Alvaro Odriozola could all be ruled out of the UEFA Super Cup clash before Madrid begin their La Liga against Getafe.

A hamstring problem continues to plague Jesus Vallejo with Julen Lopetegui confirmed that the centre-back will be out for 'several weeks' following the 2-1 win over Roma.

Incidentally, that match was supposed to feature Alvaro Odriozola, but the latest recruit was injured in the warm-up, with Nacho Fernandez also picking up a knock during the 90 minutes.

That leaves Real Madrid only with two of their first-choice defenders in Sergio Ramos and Rafael Varane, with essentially no backup.

Theo Hernandez is also on his way out to Real Sociedad. Marcelo looks sharp on the left flank while Dani Carvajal is set to start on his preferred right full-back position. However, their line of first-choice backups is pretty slim now.

Ever since his return from loan in 2016/2017, Jesús Vallejo suffered injuries specifically on his hamstring. The young Spanish central defender missed extended periods twice last season and that lingering problem appears to have returned.

Zinedine Zidane had given considerable play time to Vallejo even with his extended injury concerns. Another youngster starting alongside was Achraf Hakimi who too is out on loan to German club Borussia Dortmund.

The transfer window has been a topsy-turvy ride for Real Madrid this season. Although Los Blancos haven’t essentially signed a replacement for Ronaldo, Perez has invested heavily in upcoming talents like Vinicius Jr and Andriy Lunin. The club also lost James on loan last season and Kovacic on loan to Chelsea this season.

Story first published: Thursday, August 9, 2018, 16:28 [IST]
Other articles published on Aug 9, 2018