Real Madrid defender Eder Militao has withdrawn from Brazil’s squad for this month’s World Cup qualifiers against Chile and Peru. He joins Vinicius Junior in retiring.
Militao did not start the weekend win against Villarreal, playing just the last 19 minutes after it was reported in the days leading up to the game that he was suffering from thigh trouble.
Now the 26-year-old centre-back will not be part of his country’s October squad and has been replaced by two-capped Flamengo defender Fabricio Bruno.
Whether it’s a blessing in disguise for Madridor cause for concern remains to be seen. With summer transfer target Leny Yoro ending up at Manchester United and David Alaba in no rush on his ACL recovery, Carlo Ancelotti’s side have lacked depth at the heart of defence.
Aurelien Tchouameni started alongside Antonio Rudiger against Villarreal, with Ancelotti seemingly relying more on the midfielder than the on-loan Jesús Vallejo or the inexperienced Jacobo Ramon.
Andriy Lunin has been left out of the Ukrainian national team due to illness. The goalkeeper replaced Thibaut Courtois against Villarreal but will now miss the UEFA Nations League games against Georgia and the Czech Republic due to what the Ukrainian FA have confirmed as a “viral infection”.
Lunin was snubbed by Ukraine at Euro 2024 after a horror show against Romania in their opening game and has since been unable to dislodge Benfica’s Anatoliy Trubin. He probably would have been a spectator again this month, making his omission the sensible choice. Even so, AS has reported that Madrid expect Courtois to return when they face Celta Vigo on October 20.
Vinicius Junior suffered a neck injury at the weekend and was withdrawn before the end as a result. Rodrygo and Endrick are still part of the brazil team
France coach Didier Deschamps did not select Kylian Mbappe for the clashes with Israel and Belgium after a recent injury, also citing a lack of fitness during the September international break.
“I spoke to Kylian about the situation, which is still uncertain after coming on as a substitute on Wednesday (against Lille). He has a game on Saturday (against Villarreal) and there are doubts,” Deschamps said this week past “He has a problem that is not serious, but he needs treatment to recover properly. I am not here to take risks. That is why Kylian is not here.”
While Deschamps has “no doubt” about Mbappé’s commitment, the striker has faced criticism in his homeland following the latter’s exit at Madrid at the weekend.
