"He played two matches in a row after a month of absence and he has a muscle problem. He is not ruled out for tomorrow's match" (Saturday 9:00 p.m., editor's note), said the Italian technician from Real before the trip at neighboring Getafe on Saturday (9:00 p.m.) for the 8th day of La Liga.

Favorite for the Ballon d'Or which will be awarded on October 17 in Paris, Benzema missed a month of competition due to a "semi-tendinous muscle injury as well as muscle overload, both in the quadriceps of the right leg. "suffered on September 6 for the first day of the Champions League against Celtic Glasgow.

"Knowing the player, in general, he always wants to play. We have to assess his condition well, because playing every three days, the fatigue is significant. And the players, even when they are tired, they say that they are good", pointed out Ancelotti.

"Reviews are important, but I prefer a player who tells me he's a bit tired and prefers to take a break. In thirty years of career, only two players have told me it's better that I don't play them: Pepe before a Champions League game, and (Clarence) Seedorf before a league game," said the Italian technician.

"Carletto", however, did not seem worried about the health of his favorite striker.

"This injury has stopped him a bit, but I see the Karim of always. I have no worries about that. He may rest tomorrow (Saturday, editor's note), because we don't wants to take no risks. But he will always be the Karim of always, no worries about that", he swept away.

One of the other absentees against Getafe will be Thibaut Courtois.

The Belgian goalkeeper, who suffers from sciatica, "is improving day by day" according to Ancelotti.

"We will see if he will travel to Warsaw" to face Shakhtar Donetsk in C1 on Tuesday, but "for the clasico, he will be there, for sure", slipped the 63-year-old coach.

© 2022 AFP