Real Madrid manager Xabi Alonso has been fighting to survive in his position, but his issues have been greatly exacerbated by injury issues. Los Blancos were missing eight players for their trip to face Alaves this past weekend, and Alonso will be desperate to get players back after the winter break.
One piece of positive news for Real Madrid is that Dean Huijsen returned in the Basque Country, and looked perfectly in form in the second half. However Alonso will be without one of his remaining midfield options against Talavera de la Reina in the Copa del Rey on Wednesday night.
Ceballos to miss Copa del Rey tie
The next absence, as reported by Cadena Cope, will be Dani Ceballos. They say that the Andalusian midfielder is struggling with a stomach bug, and will miss their first clash in the cup. Following the usual course of events, Ceballos should be able to recover in time for Los Blancos’ final game of 2025 against Sevilla this weekend.
In addition to Ceballos, Kylian Mbappe, Antonio Rudiger and Fede Valverde all missed training on Tuesday, in an attempt to rest and recover from muscular discomfort they have been managing. David Alaba did return to training after several weeks out.
Positive news on the horizon for Alonso
Although Brahim Diaz has now left to participate in the African Cup of Nations with Morocco, there is positive news on the horizon for Alonso. After the break, Dani Carvajal, Eduardo Camavinga and Ferland Mendy are all due to return to fitness.
At that point, Real Madrid’s list of absences should reduce to just two long-term injuries to Trent Alexander-Arnold and Eder Militao, crucial as they are. On the other hand, as has been demonstrated, there is little guarantee that players will not pick up fresh injuries in the meantime.
