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Good news for Real Madrid as star midfielder Jude Bellingham has returned for the Whites as they open their Champions League campaign against Marseille. The England international hasn’t played a single minute this season however, Xabi Alonso has named the 22-year-old in the squad.
Xabi Alonso names star midfielder in Real Madrid’s UCL opener against Marseille after months out
The Birmingham native had returned to the training last week and the 15-time UCL champions announced this notable name in their 23-man matchday squad at the Santiago Bernabeu. The Los Blancos midfielder underwent surgery on his left shoulder last July.
Bellingham had struggled with the issue since 2023 when he dislocated his shoulder against Rayo Vallecano. The player wore a brace during games to mitigate the pain. Later, he delayed any surgery to appear for his national side at Euro 2024. It will be his first outing of the season.
The former Borussia Dortmund star is expected to be included in the Starting XI to play alongside fellow Englishman Trent Alexander-Arnold. However, any official return date for the player was never confirmed but following his surgery, he was expected to be out until October.
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Last season, Bellingham appeared in 58 games, scoring 15 goals; however, the Spanish giants missed out on the La Liga title to the arch-rivals Barcelona. The La Liga table toppers’ journey at the Champions League also ended when they were knocked out of the tournament by the Premier League side Arsenal.
Real Madrid also fell short at the Club World Cup semi-final stage, but they have now dusted themselves off to kick off a new start. The team won their recent clash against Real Sociedad despite being down to 10 men and having to play around an hour after Dean Huijsen was issued a controversial red card.
The league leaders are now ready to begin a fresh start in UCL and will be keen to perform better than the last time. The team has a 100% record against Marseille, who will be playing in the Champions League main draw for the first time since 2022-23 after finishing in second place in Ligue 1 last season.
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