Real Madrid midfielder Jude Bellingham suffered a muscle injury to his right leg during training on Friday, the club announced.
According to ESPN, Bellingham is expected to be out until mid-September following the international break.
Madrid play their first home game of the season against Real Valladolid at the Bernabeu on Sunday after starting the season with a 1-1 draw away to Mallorca last weekend.
The match will see Kylian Mbappe make his home debut after joining Madrid from Paris Saint-Germain this summer.
“Real Madrid’s medical staff today conducted tests on our player Jude Bellingham, and it was determined that he has an injury to the plantar muscle of his right leg,” the club said in a statement.
“(Bellingham) has been hit,” manager Carlo Ancelotti said at his press conference on Friday. “We are assessing it.”
Midfielder Bellingham scored 19 league goals for Madrid last season and was at his best in the side’s first trophy-winning campaign, last week’s UEFA Super Cup win over Atalanta.
With Embappe joining a La Liga and Champions League-winning squad, expectations are high for Madrid in 2024-25, but Ancelotti’s side have come under fire after dropping points in Mallorca.
“In terms of evaluation, it was quite clear,” Ancelotti said. “We lacked balance at times and we have to address that. It’s not too complicated. If the problem is clear, there is a clear solution.”
Ancelotti denied he had any issues including strikers Rodrygo, Embappe, Vinicius Junior and Bellingham in the squad.
“(Rodrigo) said he is very happy here,” Ancelotti said. “He is working hard and has been one of the best in the game, so there is no problem for him.”
