What’s the story?
La Liga giants Real Madrid ended 2016 with a trophy-laden season, winning three cups, and also lead the La Liga table from arch-rivals, Barcelona. But the year has ended on a sour note as the duo of Matteo Kovacic and Lucas Vazquez have reported injured after the winter break and are set to miss up to five games in the busy January period.
In case you didn’t know
Real Madrid’s squad reported for training yesterday after a much-deserved winter break. They now have a busy schedule in which Real will take the field five times in 17 days to cover their presence in the Club World Cup.
Kovacic and Vazquez suffered injuries in the Club World Cup held in Japan and are set to spend some time on the sidelines which will see Real's squad getting used to the maximum next month.
The heart of the matter
Vazquez returned from the Christmas break with a torn right calf muscle whereas Kovacic has a sprained right ankle. The Spanish winger is set to be out for a month while Kovacic will be back in action by the end of January. The duo have become important members of the Madrid squad and they would have started in both the legs of Real's Copa Del Rey round of 32 clash against Sevilla.
The first leg is scheduled on January 4 and manager Zinedine Zidane has a huge task on his hand now with the expectations being sky high on the Frenchman to deliver after a blockbuster 2016.
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Along with the duo, Sergio Ramos also missed first-team training on Thursday with rumours emerging that an injury to the club captain may have resulted in him missing training. The Portuguese duo of Pepe and Fabio Coentrao were also absent along with long-term absentee Gareth Bale, who is undergoing rigorous workout in the gym after his surgery.
Sportskeeda’s Take
Los Blancos have a strong and deep squad, and these two injury blows could pave the way for the pair of Isco and James Rodriguez to get another chance to impress the manager. The Colombian is presented with a last chance to stake his claim in the team with the club hierarchy ready to sell him in the summer.
