Vinicius Jr scored a fine hat-trick as Real Madrid beat Osasuna 4-0 in a match overshadowed by Eder Militao’s serious knee injury.
The Brazilian centre-back went down screaming in agony after tearing his anterior cruciate ligament when he jarred his right knee at a corner and was carried off the pitch on a stretcher with half an hour played, as 21-year old Raul Asencio replaced him for his Real debut.
A Real Madrid statement, external said that Militao “has been diagnosed with a complete tear of the anterior cruciate ligament with involvement of both menisci in his right leg” and will have surgery “in the coming days”.
Speaking after the win, manager Carlo Ancelotti said: “Three injuries in the first half is quite rare.
“The demands of the schedule do not allow players to rest and be fresh. The risk of injuries is higher. It is a general thing, not just for us.”
Vinicius’ goals helped ensure the hosts got back to winning ways after two successive defeats.
The Brazilian forward opened the scoring when he cut in from the left and slotted past Osasuna goalkeeper Sergio Herrera into the far corner.
Jude Bellingham scored his first goal of the season, latching on to Asencio’s super long ball from defence to dink over Herrera.
Vinicius found the net again after an hour thanks to Real goalkeeper Andriy Lunin’s sublime ball up the field, rounding Herrera and tapping home.
Substitute Brahim Diaz stole the ball off Enzo Boyomo and slide it across to Vinicius who finished with ease for his hat-trick.
Despite the emphatic win, Real injury problems continued to mount as Rodrygo went off injured after 20 minutes and Lucas Vazquez could not continue after the break.
Right-back Dani Carvajal suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury last month, while centre-back David Alaba remains out with a knee injury.
The result means second-placed Real move six points behind leaders Barcelona. However Hansi Flick’s side could increase the gap once more when they travel to Real Sociedad on Sunday (20:00 GMT).
