Real Madrid suffer Marc Cucurella injury blow ahead of Inter Milan clash

Real Madrid suffer Marc Cucurella injury blow ahead of Inter Milan clash After losing to Real Betis on Friday , Real Madrid are hoping to bounce back when they host Inter Milan in their Champions League opener on Tuesday. Jose Mourinho failed to win European football’s premier competition during his first spell in charge, and that failure will drive him to ensure that he achieves this goal second time around. If they are to claim La Decimosexta come next June, Real Madrid must ensure they finish inside the top eight in the league phase, as this will see them avoid the jeopardy of the play-off round, which they have featured in on the two occasions since the new format premiered. Getting off to a good start against Inter will be crucial, although Mourinho looks set to be without one of his key players for the match. In the closing stages of the Betis defeat, Marc Cucurella had to be replaced by Alvaro Carreras. Mourinho revealed in his post-match press conference that the full-back suffered with cramps, but it has since been reported that the 2026 World Cup winner is a major doubt to face the Nerazzurri because of this issue, as per MD . Carreras poised for return to starting line-up Cucurella will not be out for long, but the idea is that he does not recover in time to face Inter. Mourinho will know that taking any unnecessary risks with one of his key players would be unwise, which is why Carreras is likely to make his return to the starting line-up, having been left out for the matches against Malaga and Betis. All being well, Real Madrid will be able to manage without Cucurella for the match against Inter. He should be fine to return for the encounter with Rayo Vallecano next weekend, at which point Los Blancos will try to return to winning ways on the domestic scene.