Arbeloa confirms Mbappé out against City, but return expected ‘soon’ | OneFootball

The coach of Real Madrid, Álvaro Arbeloa, confirmed on Tuesday (10th) that French forward Kylian Mbappé will miss the first leg of the Champions League round of 16 against Manchester City, but his return will be “soon.”

“He is much better, but we have to take it day by day. He came back feeling great and, little by little, he’s improving,” Arbeloa said in an interview on the eve of the match against the ‘Citizens’.

“We are monitoring his progress, and this week has been very positive. He returned in great shape, is feeling better and better, so we expect his return very soon,” added the coach.

Physical condition of the French star

Still recovering from a left knee injury, Mbappé, back in Madrid after spending a week in Paris, did not take part in group training with his teammates and continued his individual work in the gym this Tuesday.

The absence of the French star, Real Madrid’s top scorer this season with 38 goals in 33 matches in all competitions, will make Arbeloa’s task much more difficult, as he will also be without six other key players who are in the medical department: Rodrygo, Jude Bellingham, Éder Militão, Álvaro Carreras, David Alaba, and Dani Ceballos.

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Arbeloa expects a tough match against City

The Merengue coach expects “a complicated game” against Pep Guardiola’s City, a team “capable of finding each other with their eyes closed.”

“He always has a surprise up his sleeve. No matter how many times you watch his teams play, you know you have to be prepared for the many variations that can appear. I would be very surprised if there wasn’t some new formation or a new player,” Arbeloa said about Guardiola.

Vinícius Júnior takes center stage

Without Mbappé, Rodrygo, and Bellingham, Real Madrid’s main weapon will be the Brazilian Vinícius Júnior, who was decisive in the playoff to reach the Champions League round of 16 against Benfica.

“Vinícius takes on a lot of responsibility as the leader of the attack and we’ll need him at his best if we want to eliminate Manchester City,” Arbeloa acknowledged.

*Content produced by AFP

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.