Karim Benzema, who is treating a thigh problem, will still not be available with Real Madrid for the reception of Girona on Sunday in La Liga, said his coach Carlo Ancelotti on Saturday, three weeks before the World Cup in Qatar. The Frenchman trained on Friday but “didn’t feel well” after the session, Ancelotti told a press conference, although medical examinations showed “no physical glitches”.
“He’s not 100% yet”
“We are not going to recover Karim. We believe that it is still a little early,” Ancelotti said on Saturday at a pre-match press conference, a few minutes after the day’s collective session, which did not take from Benzema. “He trained yesterday (Friday, editor’s note). But after training, he did not feel well. He took tests, which showed that he has no physical problem. But we must take into account On the one hand we have the clinical examinations, which say that he has nothing, and on the other, we have the player’s feelings, which say that he is not yet at 100 %,” “Carletto” clarified.
After receiving the 2022 Ballon d’Or from Zinedine Zidane on October 17 in Paris, Karim Benzema played 90 minutes in Elche, where he helped his side win 3-0 with one goal. But on October 22, Real announced that their French goleador suffered from “muscle fatigue in the quadriceps of the left leg”, and “KB9” thus missed the last two matches: the 3-1 victory at home against Sevilla, where he presented his Ballon d’Or to the entire Bernabéu, then the trip to Leipzig on Tuesday, where the “White House” suffered its first loss of the season (3-2).
A team that stays motivated
“The team is doing well, motivated. After the blow received in Leipzig, we want to play a big game, we want to win. We will recover almost all the players: Modric, Valverde, Ceballos, Mariano…”, indicated the Italian technician. “Rodrygo had a bad night, that’s why he didn’t train this (Saturday) morning. But he will be available for tomorrow (Sunday, editor’s note)” added Ancelotti about the possible replacement for ” KB9″ at the forward post.
Asked about the possibilities of recruiting a replacement center-forward during the winter transfer window in view of Benzema’s repeated absences at the start of the season (already six missed matches out of 17), “Carletto” brushed off the question. “We are absolutely not thinking about the winter transfer window. We are not interested. The current team is the one that will remain until the end of the season. It is not going to change,” clarified Ancelotti.