Zidane 'worried' about Real Madrid's injury crisis as Carvajal suffers knee problem

Zinedine Zidane is at a loss to explain the injury crisis that has struck Real Madrid after seeing right-back Dani Carvajal forced off in the first half of Sunday's 2-0 win against Valencia.

Carvajal lasted less than 30 minutes as he pulled up with a knee problem after being struck by the ball.

Madrid were already without several key players for Sunday's game due to injury.

What has been said?

Zidane is perplexed by the sudden increase in fitness issues in his squad and hopes Carvajal is not kept out for long.

"I don't understand. There are a lot of injuries, I'm worried. When I lose a player, as a coach it bothers me. It's a relapse," Zidane told reporters.

"I'm sorry for Carva. He played 25 minutes very well and I'm upset because he's very important to us.

"But I can't explain the reasoning [behind the injury problems] to you. As a coach, having injuries is the worst. They've come back to hurt us again.

"I only hope that [Carvajal's injury] is a small one. We'll see what the injury is and for how long he'll be out for."

Toni Kroos, who netted the home side's second goal after Karim Benzema gave them an early lead, added: "We're very worried about all the injuries and we don't know if winning all the remaining games will be enough to win the league, but we'll give our all."

Which Madrid players are currently injured?

Eden Hazard, Sergio Ramos, Marcelo, Rodrygo, Federico Valverde and Eder Militao were all unavailable for selection ahead of kick-off on Sunday.

Hazard, who has been limited to just 13 appearances in all competitions this season, suffered a muscle injury at the start of February. Zidane said on Saturday that he could be back training with the rest of the squad next week.

Madrid captain Ramos last featured in the draw against Osasuna on January 9 and could be kept out until April. 

Left-back Marcelo was kept out of the clash with Los Che with a muscle problem and is expected to be out until March.

Alvaro Odriozola and Rodrygo are both out with hamstring injuries, while Eder Militao has missed the last two matches with a knock.

Madrid were at least able to see Lucas Vazquez return to action against Valencia. He recovered from muscle trouble to make the bench on Sunday and ended up replacing Carvajal.

The bigger picture

Madrid have won three matches in a row and now sit second in the table. They trail city rivals Atletico by five points, though Diego Simeone's side have two games in hand. Barcelona, meanwhile, are three points behind Zidane's men and have one game in hand.

Desperate to increase pressure on Atletico and with a Champions League clash against Atalanta coming up on February 24, the coach will be anxious to see some of his stars return from injury very soon.

"There are many injuries, but we will continue. I hope our players recover," the Frenchman added.

"We are going to continue and we are not going to look at the other teams. I am happy for my players and we were very good defensively.

"With the ball we made very good plays, especially in the first half."

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