At a glance
- Kylian Mbappe returned to training with the rest of the group at Valdebebas on Friday.
- With 48 hours until the Clasico, he’s still unsure of being fit for a crunch meeting with FC Barcelona
- Mbappe missed the 2-0 win against Espanyol with an overload in his left hamstring.
Rare positive news from Valdebebas this week came via Kylian Mbappe training with the rest of the group on Friday.
Mbappe has been out injured since being asked to leave the action during the eventual 1-1 draw against Real Betis.
The Frenchman came off as Los Blancos won 1-0. Yet a late Hector Bellerin goal complicated the title race for Alvaro Arbeloa’s men.
With FC Barcelona continuing to win, the Catalans are 11 points clear and need just a point in El Clasico to retain the title.
Minus Mbappe, Madrid managed to end premature celebrations by beating Espanyol 2-0 at the RCDE Stadium last Sunday.
Mbappe was criticised for deciding to travel out of the country and not recover or show support for his teammates. However Vinicius Jr. did the job with a double, and Mbappe might join him in the attack against Barca.
Mbappe was diagnosed with an overload in his left hamstring which means he’s now been out for a fortnight. On Friday, however, with not much more than 48 hours until the Clasico, he joined the rest of the group for training.
Mbappe is expected to make Real Madrid’s squad list for the Clasico
Mbappe is showing that little by little, he is overcoming his niggle. Amid the chaos brought about by Aurelien Tchouameni’s brawl with Fede Valverde, he’s trained well this week.
Scoring a hat trick in this fixture on Catalan soil last season, Mbappe needs to repeat those kinds of exploits to avoid Barca heading to the streets at the turn of the week for a party with Culers.
An overall record of 12 goals in 10 matches against them stands well in his favour. However there are just three wins, one draw and six defeats in this tally which needs rectifying moving forward.
