Mendy picks up muscle injury and will miss Quarterfinals against Athletic Bilbao, questionable against PSG

Real Madrid left-back Ferland Mendy has picked up a muscle injury in training and will miss Thursday’s match against Athletic Bilbao in the Copa del Rey Quarterfinals. The French left-back could recover in time for the first leg of the Champions League’s Round of 16 against PSG but right now his status for that game is ‘questionable’.

Backup left-back and team captain Marcelo is also suspended for Thursday’s match after the red card he saw in the previous round against Elche, so Nacho Fernandez will almost certainly replace Mendy in the lineup. Academy player Miguel Gutierrez could also start but coach Carlo Ancelotti has barely used him this season.

If Nacho ends up starting and replacing Mendy in the lineup, it will be interesting to see if Ancelotti decides to deploy Alaba on the left side of the defensive line as he did earlier this season, or if Nacho will play as the left-back, which could hurt the team’s offensive production through that flank.