Vinicius Jr ruled out of Real Madrid's UCL clash against Liverpool with hamstring injury
According to Spanish media, the Brazilian winger is expected to be sidelined for nearly a month.
Real Madrid forward Vinícius Júnior has sustained a hamstring injury, the Spanish club announced on Monday, ruling him out of the upcoming Champions League clash with Liverpool.
"Following tests conducted today, our player Vinícius Júnior has been diagnosed by Real Madrid's medical team with a hamstring injury in his left leg," read a statement from the club.
According to Spanish media, the Brazilian winger is expected to be sidelined for nearly a month, meaning he will also miss the Champions League trip to Atalanta on 10th December, in addition to Wednesday's match at Anfield.
Keep updated, follow The Business Standard's Google news channel
Vinícius played the full 90 minutes of Madrid's 3-0 La Liga victory over Leganés on Sunday, providing the assist for Kylian Mbappé's opening goal.
"The crazy calendar… now to recover," wrote the 24-year-old on the social media platform X.
Real Madrid president Florentino Pérez criticised UEFA and FIFA, the governing bodies of European and global football respectively, on Sunday for increasing the number of matches in their competitions.
This season's Champions League format includes eight group stage matches instead of six, as well as an additional knockout round for some teams that fail to finish in the top eight.
Madrid are currently dealing with a spate of long-term injuries, including Dani Carvajal and Éder Militão, both of whom are sidelined with serious knee injuries. Pérez attributed the rise in injuries to the expanding match schedule.
"This season, we could play up to 82 matches — a 63 per cent increase in fixtures organised by UEFA and FIFA, rising from 22 to 36," complained Pérez.
"There have already been nine cruciate ligament injuries in La Liga this season, matching the total for the entirety of last season. Specialists are pointing to fatigue as the cause."
Vinícius has started the season in remarkable form, outshining summer signing Mbappé. The forward, who finished second in the Ballon d'Or voting, has scored four goals in four Champions League appearances this season and netted eight times in 13 La Liga matches.
