Recent days have witnessed mixed reports on the situation of David Alaba who has been out through injury for close to a year now.
The centre-back, initially expected to be back next month, still stares at an uncertain timeline out and has left the club in a grey area over the future of the centre-back position.
Some reports, however, relayed that the player was considering an early retirement after facing complications in his recovery but other reliable sources did away with that theory.
Real Madrid, meanwhile, are clear that they will not rush the defender back from injury at any cost and that his complete recovery is the priority.
As revealed in a recent update by AS, Real Madrid are confident of recovering a good version of Alaba. The light at the end of the tunnel may not be conspicuous, but the management is confident it will arrive.
The Austrian star is now expected to make his return only in December or possibly in 2025 based on the progression of his recovery.
In fact, he has even trained on the field recently and there is hope that he is not far off from a complete return.
Given his age, Alaba is primarily facing complications with the regeneration of cartilage in his joint, leading to excessive bone-to-bone friction and pain which is limiting his participation. All eyes, thus, are on the administration.
Florentino Perez and Co. have two options as it stands concerning the centre-back position and the decision will largely depend on the progression of Alaba’s recovery.
Should they maintain faith in Alaba’s swift return, the president will not sanction a new centre-back signing in January and defer it to the summer. As it stands, the Merengues are already eyeing multiple young options on the market.