More bad news for Madrid: Varane facing a month out
The central defender picked up an adductor injury in Sunday's Clásico and faces a month out. Real Madrid have just Sergio Ramos and Nacho as centre-backs.
There was some bad new for Santiago Solari on his first day in the Real Madrid job - the caretaker coach will be without Raphaël Varane and Mariano, both of whom face time on the sidelines with muscular injuries.
Varane and Mariano injured
Varane underwent tests this morning which revealed damage to the adductor muscle in his left leg, Real Madrid's Medical Services confirmed this afternoon. As is usual with the club in these situations, it was not specified how long the player will be out for, but experts consulted by AS estimate that the centre-back could face up to a month on the sidelines. Mariano meanwhile, has suffered an injury to his right hamstring and is expected to be out for the next 10 days.
Lopetegui took Varane off at half-time in Sunday’s Clásico after the player complained of twinges. The pains to his left adductor began after he committed a foul on Luis Suárez on 26 minutes which led to Barça being awarded a penalty. That he was able to continue playing until half-time suggests that it is not a serious injury but his absence is a problem for Real Madrid with Jesús Vallejo also out injured. It means that while the Frenchman is out, the team only has two natural central defenders - Sergio Ramos and Nacho.
The games they will miss
Varane: If he remains out for the next month, he will miss the Copa del Rey first leg against Melilla and the league games against Valladolid, Celta and Eibar de LaLiga as well as the Champions League games against Viktoria Plzen and Roma. He would be fit to return for the home game against Valencia at the start of December.
Mariano: Being sidelined for 10 days he would miss the Copa game against Melilla, the Valladolid game in LaLiga and the trip to the Czech Republic to face Viktoria Plzen in Matchday 4 of the Champions League. He should be back however, for the league game against Celta in Vigo on 11 November.
