Éder Militão had to leave the pitch due to an injury during the first half of Real Madrid‘s 2-0 defeat to Celta Vigo on Sunday, raising concerns about their defense ahead of this week’s Champions League encounter against Manchester City.
Militão sustained his injury while making a last-ditch tackle at the Santiago Bernabéu and required assistance from two medical staff members to exit the field. He was replaced by substitute Antonio Rüdiger in the 24th minute.
Celta Vigo managed to score twice in the second half, while Real Madrid faced the additional setback of both Fran García and Álvaro Carreras receiving red cards, further exacerbating their situation and creating a larger gap with the league leaders, Barcelona, who are now four points ahead.
Madrid will host Manchester City in the Champions League on Wednesday, followed by league matches against Alavés and Sevilla leading up to Christmas.
“We are frustrated; this wasn’t the game or result we were hoping for,” said Madrid manager Xabi Alonso post-match. “Militão’s injury impacted us significantly, and we struggled to recover. We attempted to make adjustments, but it wasn’t enough. We need to quickly move past this, as there are still many league matches ahead, and we have the City match in the UCL on Wednesday to bounce back and erase this disappointing feeling.”
Militão has faced ongoing injury issues recently, having suffered ligament tears during both the 2023-24 and 2024-25 seasons.
Real Madrid is also currently missing center-backs Dean Huijsen and David Alaba. Rüdiger has just returned from injury, while right-backs Dani Carvajal and Trent Alexander-Arnold, along with left-back Ferland Mendy, are also unavailable.