Trent Alexander-Arnold is going through the most difficult moment he’s had since arriving at Real Madrid. The club confirmed that the right back suffered a muscle injury in the rectus femoris of his left thigh at San Mamés, during the rescheduled Matchday 19 game of La Liga against Athletic Bilbao, and he’ll be out for about two and a half months, a stretch that completely disrupts Xabi Alonso’s plans.
A hole in the squad and a schedule that won’t wait
Alexander-Arnold’s injury comes at the worst possible time for the club. The original recovery estimate has been extended, and he’s now ruled out of everything that matters in the coming weeks: the Spanish Super Cup, the remaining Champions League league-phase games against Manchester City, Monaco and Benfica, the start of the Copa del Rey and a heavy run of league fixtures that includes Celta, Alavés, Sevilla, Betis, Levante and Villarreal. The optimistic projection has him returning in February, in a match against Rayo Vallecano.
With Carvajal also in the medical department after undergoing arthroscopy, Madrid reaches the end of the year without a single natural right back available. The result is immediate: improvisation, tactical adjustments and added wear in a position that’s already been a headache. Valverde is one of the players expected to fill in, and he’s handled the role with surprising ease under Carlo Ancelotti in the past.
Trent loses rhythm just as he was beginning to grow
What stings most in this story is the context. Alexander-Arnold had started four matches in a row, his form was trending upward, and at San Mamés he delivered his best performance since joining the club, including the brilliant pass that set up Mbappé’s opener. He was finally showing glimpses of the player Madrid believed it was signing. But at the 55-minute mark, his body gave out.
And this isn’t his first interruption of the season. In September, against Olympique de Marseille, he was injured just five minutes into the match and spent 49 days sidelined.
Adding up absences and missed games, the number is striking: Alexander-Arnold has been unavailable for 58 percent of Madrid’s possible matches since he arrived. The season is shaping up to be long for everyone, but especially for Alexander-Arnold, who still hasn’t had the chance to show Madrid who he can truly be.