Carlo Ancelotti delivered some much-needed good news about Vinícius Júnior's status ahead of Real Madrid's final stretch of games before the new year.
Vinícius Júnior sustained an injury to the biceps femoris in his left leg against Leganes back on Nov. 24 and was expected to be out for up to a month. The winger already missed three games for Real Madrid and his team only managed to collect points in one of those fixtures.
On the eve of Real Madrid's upcoming La Liga match against Girona, Ancelotti sat down for his pre-match press conference and revealed a major injury boost coming Los Blancos' way.
"We’re encouraged to see Vini, who has recovered very well from his injury," Ancelotti said. "He won’t play [against Girona], but he’ll be ready for the next Champions League match."
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If Vinícius Júnior's recovery stays on track, he will be available against Atalanta on Dec. 10. The Champions League clash comes four months after the two sides met in the UEFA Super Cup final, which ended with Real Madrid securing a comfortable 2–0 victory.
Real Madrid's form has since taken a significant dive. Ancelotti's men sit in 24th place in the Champions League league phase standings and trail Barcelona by four points (with a game in hand) in La Liga. With Kylian Mbappé struggling to produce on the left wing and from the penalty spot, Real Madrid desperately needs its best goalscorer back on the pitch to get its Spanish and European title defenses back on track.
Before his injury, Vinícius Júnior recorded 12 goals and five assists across all competitions this season. In his absence, Real Madrid has scored just three goals in as many matches, and one of them was a penalty.
Getting Vinícius Júnior back ahead of schedule will invigorate a Real Madrid side that suffered a lopsided defeat to Liverpool and a sloppy defeat to Athletic Bilbao while the Brazilian was sidelined.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Carlo Ancelotti Confirms Vinicius Junior Return Date.
