Real Madrid deliberately leaking misleading medical information about injured players

There was no shortage of surprise when Real Madrid released their squad list for Wednesday’s Champions League clash with Lille, due to the fact Kylian Mbappe was on it. The French forward had been ruled out for around three weeks with a hamstring issue less than seven days ago, but Mbappe is reportedly in contention to play.

The reason, according to Relevo, is due to the club policy on handling injuries. Los Blancos rarely if ever give recovery periods in their official medical updates on injuries, but they will ‘unofficially’ provide a recovery time for the local media.

Those recovery periods are deliberately longer than the time they actually believe it will take the player to be back in action, as it gives them margin for setbacks, and reduces concern if a player’s recovery is not exactly on schedule. In addition, it is noted that Los Blancos do possess a top of the range medical department, and some of the most physically gifted athletes in the world. It also allows the club to sell their recoveries as small successes for the players and medical staff.

Examples given are Jude Bellingham, who returned a week ahead of his month-long diagnosis in September, and Eder Militao, who returned a week after he was supposedly injury for up to two weeks. Similarly with Mbappe, his recovery period was always likely to be close to 7-10 days than 15-21. It is noted that Dani Ceballos could return from injury in October, although David Alaba will depend on how he responds to training, and Brahim Diaz will not be back before December.

Whether consciously or subsconsciously, it certainly reduces the pressure on the player, and it saves Carlo Ancelotti from a few awkard questions no doubt. Increasingly, there is less and less clarity on player injuries in football, and there is no system of regulation, as there is in the likes of the NFL in the USA, where teams face punishment for inaccurately reporting the fitness of their players.

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