Rival watch: Real Madrid midfielder expected to miss Barcelona clash through muscle injury

In a little over a week, FC Barcelona will come face to face with arch-rivals Real Madrid in the first El Clasico of the 2023/24 season.

The contest is set to take place at Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys on October 28 and will have major implications as far as the La Liga title race is concerned.

Building up to the game, Barça have been dealt with multiple injury setbacks, but it now appears that Real Madrid will also have an absentee for the Clasico through injury.

Dani Ceballos out of El Clasico

Indeed, according to The Athletic’s Mario Cortegana, Real Madrid midfielder Dani Ceballos is expected to miss the match against Barcelona next week due to a muscle injury.

The 27-year-old ace has already missed a chunk of matches for Los Blancos due to an injury in pre-season. He was unavailable for the friendly encounter between the two teams in the USA either.

And now, Ceballos is set to miss the first Clasico of the season due to a muscle injury he sustained in training earlier this week.

As per the report, the Spaniard has sustained a minor tear in the rectus muscle in his right leg which is set to keep him out of action for close to ten days.

Therefore, Ceballos is expected to miss Real Madrid’s next three matches against Sevilla, SC Braga, and Barcelona.

Who else is unavailable?

Real Madrid will also be without long-term absentees Eder Militao and Thibaut Courtois for the first El Clasico of the season while Arda Guler is a doubt.

Nacho Fernandez was set to miss the game through the suspension, but his three-match ban was reduced to two, making him eligible to feature against the La Liga champions.

As for Barcelona, they will be without Jules Kounde, Frenkie de Jong, and Sergi Roberto for the game while question marks linger over Robert Lewandowski’s availability.

Pedri and Raphinha, however, are expected to recover in time to face the Merengues.