Tchouameni still sidelined with adductor injury, Mourinho rules out rushing return at Real Madrid

Aurélien Tchouameni will miss Real Madrid’s second Liga match of the season against Real Sociedad at the Bernabéu on Wednesday night (21:00). The French international midfielder, still troubled by an adductor injury picked up at the World Cup, has been excluded from the squad by José Mourinho.

Tchouameni suffered the injury during France’s World Cup round-of-16 tie against Paraguay. He was forced to sit out the quarter-final against Morocco but returned to the starting lineup for the semi-final against Spain, taking a risk that has not aided his recovery.

At his pre-match press conference, Mourinho clarified that his player had not suffered a fresh setback. “He suffered a lot during the World Cup,” the Portuguese coach explained. “Which is normal — you suffer during a World Cup. When you have to play while injured at the end of the season, knowing a month’s holiday follows, you take risks. That’s what he did.”

Mourinho then outlined the plan going forward: “We decided with him, the staff and the medical department that he returns at 100 percent. We’ll see if that takes another week, two more weeks, but we won’t force anything.” A cautious approach that leaves Tchouameni’s absence open-ended for now.

Beyond Tchouameni, Mourinho is also without Raul Asencio, Eder Militao, Ferland Mendy, Thiago Pitarch, Rodrygo and Endrick for this fixture.