Ancelotti concerned about the physical exhaustion of two Real Madrid stars

The FIFA World Cup 2022 ended yesterday with Argentina winning over France.

As many as 12 Real Madrid players were called up for the World Cup excluding Karim Benzema who had to return before the tournament due to an injury.

Eden Hazard and Thibaut Courtois (Belgium), Antonio Rudiger (Germany), Federico Valverde (Uruguay), Dani Carvajal and Marco Asensio (Spain), Eder Militao, Rodrygo and Vinicius Jr (Brazil), Luka Modric (Croatia) and Aurelien Tchouameni and Eduardo Camavinga (France) were the ones in Qatar.

Of the 12, though, only two remain alive in the competition heading into the final in Tchouameni and Camavinga. Meanwhile, Modric finished in third place with Croatia after defeating Morocco last evening.

And, according to Mundo Deportivo, Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti is very much concerned about the physical exhaustion of two of his players in Modric and Tchouameni ahead of the restart of the season.

Of the 12 Los Blancos’ stars that were in Qatar, four were eliminated at the group stages itself and have already returned to training. Two more crashed out at the Round of 16, while three more were eliminated in the quarter-finals.

Only Modric, Tchouameni, and Camavinga made it as far as the semi-finals. Of the trio, though, Camavinga has hardly played for France at the tournament. But, Modric and Tchouameni have been permanent fixtures for their respective teams throughout the World Cup.

Indeed, Modric played in each of Croatia’s seven matches to help them secure a podium finish. And at 37, the midfielder put his body through great strain, and Ancelotti is worried about the physical wear and tear that the veteran might have experienced which might hamper Real Madrid in the second half of the season.

Tchouameni, too, has been an ever-present in France’s midfield, featuring in each of their six games and is expected to start in the finals today, having recovered from a minor hip issue.

But given that Real Madrid have counted on him to replace Casemiro this season, Ancelotti is naturally concerned about Tchouameni suffering the after-effects of his exertions at the World Cup once club football resumes.

Real Madrid will restart their campaign against Real Valladolid on December 30, but it is unlikely that either Modric or Tchouameni will be rushed back into action for that contest. Ancelotti will prefer to take it easy with the duo, especially with Los Blancos facing a nightmarish schedule in early 2023.