Alaba all but ruled out against Osasuna, Rudiger is Real Madrid’s only CB available

Real Madrid center-back David Alaba didn’t train with the squad this Friday and his presence in Saturday’s home match against Osasuna is all but ruled out at this point, meaning that Antonio Rüdiger will be the team’s only center-back available in that game after Nacho’s suspension for his challenge on Girona’s Portu last Saturday.

In that context, Ferland Mendy could be deployed alongside Rüdiger in the center of the team’s defensive line, with either Eduardo Camavinga or Fran Garcia as the left-back. Ancelotti could also trust some Castilla defenders in this game, but his track record shows that he will likely keep them as a secondary option off the bench if anything happens during the match.

If Alaba ends up missing the game as expected, he won’t travel with Austria this upcoming FIFA break, that being also the reason why Real Madrid will not rush him back.