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Xabi Alonso has cast doubt on Kylian Mbappe playing for Real Madrid in their FIFA Club World Cup clash against Pachuca on Sunday, June 22. He revealed that the Frenchman was feeling better, but not fit enough to play.
Alonso said to the media that he hopes to have Mbappe back on the pitch for their final group-stage game against RB Salzburg. He said via MadridXtra:
“Kylian Mbappé is feeling a bit better. It’ll be complicated for him to play vs Pachuca. We’ll hopefully have him vs Salzburg.”
The news will be a slight blow for the new manager as he did not have the Frenchman for his first match in charge of the Blancos. They drew 1-1 against Al-Hilal on June 18. He was hoping that the issue was not serious and said ahead of the match via Football Espana:
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“Kylian was feeling a little better this morning, but not enough. It’s very hot and it was better that I didn’t train. But we will wait until the last moment. Tomorrow morning we will decide."
Kylian Mbappe was in the hospital this week after a bout of acute gastroenteritis. The Frenchman is yet to completely recover, and Real Madrid are willing to give him time before getting him back on the pitch.
Xabi Alonso on Real Madrid's draw without Kylian Mbappe
Xabi Alonso had to play Gonzalo Garcia in the opening match of the FIFA Club World Cup after Kylian Mbappe was ruled out. The Real Madrid youngster scored the opening goal, but Ruben Neves pulled Al Hilal level before half-time.
Alonso said about the match via Managing Madrid:
"I know there are still things to improve. That’s the same as there are. I saw a reaction in the second half. Everything takes time. It’s only been three training sessions. The demand for a result is there, but what we want to be takes time.”
“Probably the reaction in the second half. I didn’t like the first half too much. We didn’t play very well, we didn’t have good ball circulation, we were very wide, and we didn’t know how to adjust when we lost the ball. We’ll have to look at that to react. We reacted in the second half; we had much better balance on the ball. We got close to the box and were able to drown them out a bit more. We still needed to be a little more precise in those final meters. Regardless of the result, we have to keep seeing positives.”
Federico Valverde had the golden chance to win the match for Real Madrid in the injury time of the second half. However, his penalty was saved by Yassine Bounou, and the Saudi Pro League side managed to get a point from the match.
