Real Madrid Player Is Unvaccinated, Will Be Banned From Playing In Upcoming Tournament
A Real Madrid player is currently unvaccinated and it could put his participation in the Spanish Super Cup in doubt - with the tournament being held in Saudi Arabia.
Carlo Ancelotti's side face bitter rivals Barcelona on Wednesday in the competition's semi-final, with a clash against either Atletico Madrid or Athletic Bilbao waiting next Sunday.
El Larguero have reported that as it stands, 'Los Blancos' will be leaving one player at home due to their vaccination status.
Saudi Arabia currently don't allow unvaccinated visitors and they won't be changing their rules for any of the four teams visiting.
The player's identity is yet to be revealed but the club are set to name their squad for the tournament in the coming days.
It's been a positive season for Real, who are top of La Liga by five points after a turbulent summer.
Zinedine Zidane left his role as manager and starting central defenders Sergio Ramos and Raphael Varane also departed for Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester United respectively.
David Alaba on a free and Eduardo Camavinga were their big summer signings, but they failed in their pursuit of France superstar Kylian Mbappe.
PSG refused to let Mbappe, who is set to be out of contract in the summer, leave and it's widely believed he won't renew his contract.
Despite all that, Real have lost just two games in the league all season and maintain a healthy lead over closest challengers Sevilla.
One man who has impressed this campaign is Vinicius Jr, with the Brazil international starting to fulfils his massive potential.
The 21-year-old has 10 goals and five assists in 15 games and it's seen Ancelotti have to deny is too reliant on the youngster, after defeat to Getafe last week without him in the squad.
“You can’t say there has been Viniciusdependence at Real Madrid," Ancelotti joked ahead of this weekend's clash with Valencia.
"He did very well in the first half of the season and helped us win matches, but so did [Karim] Benzema, [Eder] Militao and everyone. To speak this way about one player seems too much, but he has been very important.
"His dribbling and his role in the counter-attacking has been important, as well as his goals. He is back now and we’re all happy to have him back.”
Topics: Real Madrid, Spain
Daniel Marland