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Alaba is at risk of retiring early. |
Once again, Alaba was sidelined. Just when hope was glimmering after nearly two months of recovering from a meniscus injury, bad news came: a torn left soleus muscle.
So the season was over. And so was his dream of playing at the Club World Cup - the stage where he hoped to have a few final minutes to prove he was still worth something.
Alaba is not the only name racing against time at Real Madrid. Militao, Camavinga, Carvajal... also held their breath every day to be able to return on time. But unlike them, Alaba was not lucky enough to win that race.
Once again, his body betrayed him—not his knee, not his adductor—but his soleus, the same injury that had plagued him two years earlier. Though it was his other leg this time, the result was the same: four weeks out, and the end of the season.
For a 32-year-old player, the wear and tear of time is inevitable. But for Alaba, that process is happening at an alarming rate.
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Alaba has been continuously injured recently. |
This season alone, he has suffered three major injuries: an adductor tear, a meniscus tear, and now a torn soleus. In total, the former Bayern Munich star has played just 14 games, missing another 13, not counting the previous long absence due to a torn cruciate ligament. For the past two years, Alaba has been more of a “sideline player” than a real player for Real.
That situation has left his future at Madrid in doubt. A player earning nearly 13 million euros net per season - and unable to play - is clearly a financial burden.
The club opened the door to transfer offers, and they did so openly. But Alaba did not want to leave. He told the board that he wanted to stay, to fight for his place - even though he knew he would only be the fifth centre-back for the upcoming World Cup.
Real respects that decision, but also implicitly confirms: there will be no more extensions. The partnership is coming to an end.
Alaba's career has been an extraordinary journey. From a youngster at Bayern Munich to an icon. A world-class full-back turned centre-back who can play anywhere from defence to midfield.
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Alaba has just said goodbye to the Club World Cup. |
At Real Madrid, Alaba was the perfect replacement for Sergio Ramos, wearing the Austrian captain’s armband with a leader’s aura. But that glorious period is now overshadowed by a series of consecutive injuries. To the point where it is no longer a question of “when will Alaba return”, but “how many more times can he return?”.
His continued stay in the US with the team - despite being confirmed unable to play - is a testament to his professionalism and his desire to never give up. But it also feels like a quiet farewell.
Because from this point on, the Club World Cup is no longer Alaba's. The season is no longer his. And perhaps, the time wearing the Real Madrid shirt is also starting to count down.
Xabi Alonso will have to make do with the rest: Rüdiger, Huijsen, Asencio, and possibly Militao, who is only fit enough to be on the bench. Young players like Jacobo and Diego Aguado will be the backups, while Tchouameni, as usual, will be the “all-purpose patch”. But everyone knows: Alaba is no longer an option, even an emergency one.
Perhaps the most bitter thing is not the injury. It is that Alaba is so close - so close - to returning to the pitch. Right after the end of exactly eight weeks of rehabilitation, he returned to training, was in tune with his teammates, was preparing for a gentle return, a few minutes at the end of the match - enough to confirm: I am still here.
But football is always cruel. It waits for no one, and is even more unforgiving to those with weak legs.
The injury is not just the end of Alaba's season. It also signals the end of a chapter in his career - and, perhaps, the beginning of an unofficial farewell to the big stage.
In football, not everyone has the right to choose how they leave. And for Alaba, perhaps this year's Club World Cup dream has ended along with a glorious period.
Source: https://znews.vn/het-roi-alaba-post1564376.html
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