MADRID, March 1 (Xinhua) -- Real Madrid coach Alvaro Arbeloa has several injuries to contend with ahead of his side's La Liga game at home to Getafe on Monday night.
Real Madrid will be without central defender Raul Asencio, who has a neck injury after falling badly in last week's Champions League win at home to Benfica, while Dean Huijsen is also out with a muscle problem.
Those absences and the long-term loss of Eder Militao mean Arbeloa will have to decide between David Alaba and Aurelien Tchouameni in central defense. Still, his main problem is the knee injury that kept top scorer Kylian Mbappe out against Benfica and which looks likely to sideline him for longer.
Real Madrid has not published a medical communique to explain Mbappe's injury, but when speaking to the press on Sunday morning, Arbeloa said the club was "very clear about what's wrong with him and what we want now, which is for him to recover from these discomforts and return at 100% when he's fully recovered."
He refused to give a possible return date for the striker, who has scored 23 goals in La Liga and 13 in the Champions League, saying Mbappe would be monitored "day by day."
"It's a matter of him seeing how he feels, and right now it's best not to give any deadlines...We want him back at 100%, and when that happens, he'll be back," said Arbeloa.
The Real Madrid coach also discussed Monday's must-win match, which comes with FC Barcelona opening a four-point lead at the top of La Liga after beating Villarreal 4-1 on Saturday.
Getafe travels to the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium in 13th place in La Liga, five points above the relegation zone and with a chance to open that up to eight points with a win.
"They're a very difficult opponent, capable of making for very close matches and forcing you to play your own game. I'm really looking forward to playing at home in front of our fans," commented Arbeloa. ■
