One of Real Madrid’s best players this season a doubt for El Clasico

Real Madrid players just haven’t been able to catch a break in terms of injury in the past year or so. There have been so many injuries, I can’t remember the last time everyone in the squad was 100% fit. It’s involved a few rough challenges and a lot of bad luck, but Real Madrid find themselves in the same position once again, this time with defender Eder Militao.

Eder Militao picked up an injury during the international break. In the second half of the Brazil-Colombia game, Militao was subbed off for Thiago Silva.

It has been said by Mario Cortegana that there’s no actual date of return set for Eder Militao as of now, but they will conduct some tests and see if the Brazilian would be able to play against Shakhtar. According to him, it’s just a knock, and he is not completely ruled out for the game against Shakhtar.

But, Alberto Pereiro of Onda Cero has said that the injury is muscular, and there’s no chance he plays against Shakhtar. He’s even said that Militao is a doubt for the game against Barcelona later this month.

Real Madrid need Militao to recover as soon as possible

The centre-back situation at Real Madrid is already bad enough, and Real need all their players to stay fit for as long as possible. Eder Militao has been one of Real Madrid’s best players, as his dominance in the air has become important while defending corners and crosses.

We just know there are going to be so many of them in the game against Barcelona in case Luuk De Jong gets a start. Real Madrid would definitely need Militao back before that, because the other choices are simply not as good aerially as he is, and Luuk De Jong might be able to capitalize on that.

Real have faced issues defensively and they’ve only been somewhat decent at defending when both Militao and Alaba start as centre-backs. Nacho has been below average, to say the least, and Jesus Vallejo hasn’t featured for a single minute because clearly, he’s just not a great centre-back and Carlo Ancelotti doesn’t trust him yet.

Alaba will once again have to be the leader at the back and lead the Real Madrid defensive line if he doesn’t make it back in time. Even though Ferland Mendy has been good whenever asked to play as centre-back, I doubt Ancelotti would play him anywhere but his natural position in his first few games back.

Even if Militao makes it back in time, he is still a doubt against Shakhtar and Real Madrid will need to rely on Nacho Fernandez, a player that hasn’t had many good games this season, and is prone to making huge gambles in defense that almost never pay off. So, you have a few great reasons to be nervous about the games that lie ahead.

Time will tell for how long he is actually out. He may come back soon, he may not. We sure hope he is able to feature against Shakhtar, though.