Vinicius and Lucas Vázquez Further Weaken Real Madrid

Bad news continues to pile up for Real Madrid. In addition to the defeat in the clásico, which handed the league title to Barça and possibly hastened Carlo Ancelotti's appointment as Brazil's new coach before announcing his departure from the white club, the confirmed injuries of Vinicius and Lucas Vázquez add to their woes. The forward suffers a sprain in his left ankle, as Ancelotti himself revealed after the clash against Barça, and the versatile Galician player has a muscular ailment in his groin.

The medical services of Real Madrid have not specified the severity of these physical problems, nor the recovery time. What is certain is that neither will be available for Wednesday's league match against Mallorca at the Santiago Bernabéu, a fixture where if the Merengues do not win, Barça will mathematically secure the title without needing to wait for their Catalan derby against Espanyol on Thursday.

Vinicius, who initially requested a substitution at Montjuic and then retracted, was eventually replaced by youth player Víctor Muñoz in the 88th minute. "I made the change because he had an ankle sprain issue. He tried, but it bothered him, so I preferred to substitute him," Ancelotti explained post-match. The Brazilian is under observation, but he may not take risks and could delay his return until the Club World Cup starting on June 18.

Lucas Vázquez, replaced by Endrick in the 84th minute of the clásico, suffers a "left pectineus muscle injury," according to the brief medical report. His absence is an even more serious setback for Ancelotti, who is left almost without players to form a defense. "We must not forget that we were missing five defenders," Carletto recalled after the defeat against Barça, referring to the absences of Carvajal, Rüdiger, Militao, Mendy, and Alaba, as well as Camavinga, a midfielder who can also adapt to the left-back position.

This is the fifth physical setback Lucas Vázquez has suffered this season. In November, the winger-turned-fullback sustained a left adductor injury that sidelined him for 17 days. Between January and February, he experienced a couple of minor muscular issues before a new hamstring injury in his left leg left him out for nine days. In total, he has missed five matches due to injury and has accumulated 32 days on the sidelines.