Real Madrid are being hit hard again by the injury bug in the 2024/25 LaLiga season. Here is the latest injury news surrounding the reigning Champions League winners’ star players, including return dates when applicable.
LW Vinicius Junior
Real Madrid superstar forward and Ballon d’Or favorite Vinicius Junior suffered a cervical spine injury against Villarreal on Oct. 6 and will be out through the October international fixtures for Brazil.
Due to the uncertain nature of the injury, Vinicius Jr. is without a timetable for return, but Real Madrid fans will hope he is back for the Champions League Final rematch against Dortmund on Oct .22, or at the very least the all-important and title-decisive Clasico vs. Barcelona on Oct. 26.
GK Thibaut Courtois
Thibaut Courtois missed the Champions League defeat to Lille with a hip injury and was also unable to play in LaLiga this past weekend against Villarreal. With the international break ahead, Courtois should be able to return for the first game back against Celta Vigo.
It would be a big surprise if the Belgian goalkeeper is unable to play against Dortmund or Barcelona.
AM Brahim Diaz
Real Madrid playmaker Brahim Diaz scored 8 goals with 6 assists as a key rotational piece for the champions of Europe in his return to the Santiago Bernabeu last season.
Unfortunately, Brahim is no longer an option for the near future, as he suffered an abductor muscle injury in his right leg in the win over Real Sociedad a few weeks ago, putting him at three months needed to return.
That means Real Madrid will have to wait until mid-December for the Moroccan international to return, placing Brahim’s return date to Real Madrid at around the Dec. 15 fixture against local rivals Rayo Vallecano.
RB Dani Carvajal
Dani Carvajal suffered a torn ACL in Real Madrid’s 2-0 win over Villarreal on Oct. 6, joining Barcelona goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen as a veteran of El Clasico to suffer a season-ending injury in a victory against the Yellow Submarine.
He will certainly be out for the remainder of the 2024/25 season, and Real Madrid will hope that he is able to make a full recovery when the 2025/26 season starts. Now 32 years old, Carvajal was so good last season that he was a Ballon d’Or candidate after winning LaLiga, the Champions League, and the Euros with Spain.
The ACL tear comes after Carvajal answered a lot of critics with two great, fully fit seasons to reclaim his status as the best right back in the world. Unfortunately, that may be up in the air after this injury.
CB David Alaba
David Alaba is another experienced Real Madrid defender who recently suffered an ACL tear, as he went down with a season-ending injury in December of 2023. His recovery has been a lot slower than expected, as, here in October, Alaba still has not played a minute for Real Madrid in the 2024/25 campaign.
As of right now, Real Madrid expect Alaba to return to the team in November, but because of the slow nature of his recovery, the club are not putting pressure on the Austrian captain to return at a set date. They’d rather keep taking the cautious approach with the 32-year-old.
CM Dani Ceballos
Dani Ceballos suffered a right ankle sprain during Madrid’ 2-0 win over his former employers Real Betis at the beginning of September, and he was reportedly out for six to eight weeks at the time of the injury.
So the Spanish midfielder could return to Real Madrid as early as the match against Celta Vigo on Oct. 19 after the international fixtures, but he could also be out until November at the latest with a battle at the Mestalla on Nov. 2 vs. Valencia being the first match of that month.
The managing editor of The Trivela Effect, Kevin has 15 years of experience in digital media. He covered Real Madrid from 2019-2022 for The Real Champs as a site manager. His work has been featured in ESPN, Bleacher Report, Yahoo! Sports, NBC Sports, and other major outlets. You can contact him at the site’s official Twitter handle @TrivelaEffect or via the site’s official email thetrivelaeffect@gmail.com.