Real Madrid midfielder Jude Bellingham is ready to return from a dislocated shoulder and could start for Los Blancos against Cadiz in LaLiga on Sunday.
Bellingham was injured in the first half of Real Madrid's 0-0 draw against Rayo Vallecano earlier this month, and although he completed the 90 minutes, the England star was an unused substitute in the Champions League win over Braga a few days later and sat out the 5-1 win over Valencia altogether.
With the problem more serious than originally thought, Bellingham also missed England's games against Malta and North Macedonia, but the 20-year-old has been included in Madrid's squad to face Cadiz in LaLiga on Sunday.
The midfielder's return is good news for Madrid, but coach Carlo Ancelotti is still without a number of injured players, with Vinicius Junior the latest to be struck down after tearing a thigh muscle in action for Brazil during the international break.
Midfielders Eduardo Camavinga and Aurelien Tchouameni are also out, along with centre-back Eder Militao and goalkeepers Thibaut Courtois and Kepa Arrizabalaga.
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"These injuries have affected us a bit, but this squad is well constructed," Ancelotti said on Saturday. "We have been competitive without Militao, Courtois, Vinicius and Bellingham.
"We have all the confidence in the world. We see this as an opportunity to show how good we are, and how good the other players in this squad are."
The Italian believes there are too many matches in the modern game and has called for changes to be made as the amount of fixtures continues to rise.
"It's a calendar that can't continue," he said. "We have this problem and it will get worse, we have a World Cup with more games, a Champions League with more games. The only solution is to reduce the number of games. But I've never heard a players' union say something.
"If they cut the number of games, it would be good. It would reduce the number of injuries and improve the spectacle. I've seen games in this international break which finished 8-0, 14-0. I don't know if that makes a lot of sense."
In the meantime, Madrid may have to play in a slightly different way and Ancelotti says Bellingham could be used in a deeper role.
"We have a lot of resources," he said. "Bellingham can play in midfield. Brahim has done well. Vinicius didn't play for a month and we got good results. Bellingham didn't play and we scored five goals against Valencia.
"Federico [Valverde] could be an option at pivot. So is [Toni] Kroos. It could be Kroos-Valverde, Kroos-[Dani] Ceballos, Kroos-[Luka] Modric. We have a lot of options."
More Jude Bellingham stories
Jude Bellingham ahead of Zinedine Zidane and Luis Figo? A former team-mate of the Real Madrid legends has explained how the England midfielder has the edge on the Frenchman and the Portuguese.
Meanwhile, it has been claimed that Bellingham rejected Manchester United because the Red Devils were unable to guarantee him first-team football at Old Trafford.
And following his heroics in El Clasico for Real Madrid recently, the England midfielder has been compared to Los Blancos legend Cristiano Ronaldo.
