Courtois, out for a month and a half with a muscle injury
Madrid, March 19 (EFE)
Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois will be sidelined for a month and a half after suffering a “muscle injury to the rectus femoris of his right quadriceps” during last Tuesday’s match against Manchester City.
“Following tests carried out today on our player Thibaut Courtois by the Real Madrid Medical Services, he has been diagnosed with a muscle injury to the rectus femoris of his right quadriceps,” the club stated on its website.
According to EFE sources within the club, this translates to approximately six weeks away from the pitch, meaning Courtois will not return until May.
Therefore, the Belgian will miss the La Liga matches against Atlético de Madrid, Mallorca, Girona, Alavés, and Betis, as well as the Champions League quarter-final tie against Bayern Munich.
Courtois felt a muscle strain during the warm-up for the Champions League round of 16 second leg, but decided to play and ultimately proved crucial, making four saves in the first half to secure Real Madrid’s victory.
With the score at 1-1 at the Etihad Stadium, Manchester City down to ten men after Bernardo Silva’s dismissal, and Real Madrid holding a three-goal advantage from the first leg, Álvaro Arbeloa opted to substitute Andriy Lunin. This change, initially considered “not taking any risks,” resulted in a muscle injury that leaves Real Madrid without their starting goalkeeper at a critical stage of the season. Therefore, it will once again be Lunin’s turn.
This season, the Ukrainian goalkeeper has only featured in four matches: against Olympiacos and Manchester City in the Champions League, and against Talavera de la Reina and Albacete in the Copa del Rey.
And this Sunday he’ll get his first minutes in La Liga, in a high-pressure scenario, in the derby against Atlético de Madrid at the Santiago Bernabéu (9:00 PM CET, -1 GMT).
Lunin has already faced an opponent four times, with a record of three defeats and one draw.
