Antonio Rudiger 'misses training ahead of Madrid derby'

Antonio Rudiger was reportedly unable to train with his Real Madrid teammates on Saturday morning, with the centre-back expected to miss Sunday's Madrid derby against Atletico Madrid.

The Germany international was forced off in the first half of the La Liga clash with Getafe on Thursday evening following a heavy challenge with on-loan Manchester United forward Mason Greenwood.

Rudiger's injury is an impact one, and on Friday, Real Madrid were believed to be confident that the centre-back would be able to recover in time for the game with Diego Simeone's side.

However, according to Marca, the ex-Chelsea defender was unable to take part in Saturday's training session.

AS report that Rudiger still has 'considerable pain' in the area, and it is now likely that he will be absent for the Madrid derby, which will force head coach Carlo Ancelotti into a reshuffle at the back.

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Eder Militao and David Alaba are both absent with serious knee injuries, leaving Nacho as the only senior centre-back available for selection.

Central midfielder Aurelien Tchouameni is the cover at the back, but the France international is suspended on Sunday due to the late yellow card that he picked up against Getafe.

As a result, if Rudiger is unavailable, it is expected that Dani Carvajal will play in the middle of the defence alongside Nacho, with Lucas Vazquez then coming into the side at right-back.

"If we don't have Rudiger we will put in another centre-back who will not be used to playing there, but will do it very well," Ancelotti said during his press conference after the 2-0 win over Getafe.

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"I don't know what happened, he took out the card and Tchouameni won't be there for the game. Rudiger has had a blow and we'll see what happens in the next few days.

"We have two days for him to recover. It's a strong blow to the muscle. Rudiger is a warrior and it's difficult for him not to get to the game because of a little annoyance."

Rudiger has been a vital player for Real Madrid this season, making 30 appearances in all competitions, scoring twice and registering one assist in the process.

Los Blancos are believed to have considered signing another centre-back in January due to Alaba's ACL injury towards the end of last year, but Militao is set to return in the coming weeks, which would hand the capital side a huge boost for the closing stages of the campaign.