Real Madrid’s preparations for the Madrid derby with Atletico have been disrupted by Jude Bellingham withdrawing from a training session because of a stomach problem.
The 20-year-old has been in electrifying form for Carlo Ancelotti’s side, scoring six goals in six games following his big-money move from Borussia Dortmund.
Bellingham’s performances have drawn widespread praise and adulation, and he furthered his credentials as one of the world’s best midfielders with a commanding performance in England’s recent 3-1 win over Scotland at Hampden Park.
Though he’s been in Madrid for just a couple of months, Bellingham has already become one of the club’s clutch players, and he was on hand to score a dramatic stoppage-time winner as Union Berlin’s defence was finally penetrated in the dying moments of their Champions League clash on Wednesday.
Bellingham would be one of the first names on Ancelotti’s team sheet for the upcoming derby with Atletico at the Estadio Civitas Metropolitano, but his participation has been thrown into doubt after he exited a training session with an apparent stomach issue.
Spanish publication AS report that Madrid officials are confident that Bellingham will be fit and available for the match, which kicks off late on Sunday, but his absence from training is a concern for Ancelotti given he’s already without the injured Vinicius Junior.
The influential Brazilian winger is being eased back from a hamstring injury and is unlikely to be seen again in a Real Madrid shirt this side of the October international break. Thibaut Courtois and Eder Militao, two other prominent figures in Madrid’s starting lineup, are also absent long-term after both rupturing their anterior cruciate ligament.
Were Bellingham to drop to the bench or miss the game entirely, Ancelotti would at least have a raft of midfield options to call upon. The 14-time Champions League winners are particularly well stocked in the middle of the park, with a revamped tactical system allowing the Italian to field as many as four centrally-minded players at one time, and have Luka Modric and Eduardo Camavinga waiting in the wings.
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