Carlo Ancelotti reveals what is to blame for Real Madrid injury crisis

Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti has blamed the "too demanding" football calendar for the club's growing injury problems, calling for the number of games to be reduced.

Jude Bellingham is only just back after missing a month with a leg muscle injury. Aurelien Tchouameni has also returned following a slightly shorter absence, but Madrid are still without fellow midfielders Eduardo Camavinga and Dani Ceballos.

Brahim Diaz has been ruled out until the end of 2024, while David Alaba continues to make a slow recovery from an ACL injury. Madrid were also relieved last week to discover that Eder Militao was not seriously injured when he withdrew from international duty.

In Ancelotti's eyes, it's not what the club can do to ease the situation, but football's powers.

"We've looked at what we can do, but it's out of our hands," he suggested this week as Madrid prepare to begin the new eight-game Champions League 'league phase'.

"The problem is a calendar that's too demanding," the boss added.

"Now we have a new [Champions League]. We don't know how it will go, if it will be more entertaining, but the one fact is that we have two extra games. I call for people to think about cutting the number of games, to have more attractive competitions."

Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson has similarly been critical of the bloated calendar, suggesting that player welfare wasn't sufficiently considered when the Champions League was expanded.

The reformatting of Europe's elite club competition sees it grow from 32 teams to 36, pooled into one single league table. Each club will face eight opponents as they battle for a place in the knockout stages, with the top eight receiving an automatic bye to the last 16 and those placed from ninth to 24th pushed into an additional knockout play-off round.

It means half of the clubs in the last 16 will have had to play as many as ten games to get there, with the other half playing eight, whereas it previously only required six.

At the end of the season, Madrid will be among 32 clubs involved in the revamped FIFA Club World Cup, which is now a quadrennial summer tournament lasting a whole month. The old Club World Cup hasn't been scrapped, though, with Madrid also having to play in a rebranded FIFA Intercontinental Cup that has replaced the annual tournament in December.

On top of La Liga, Copa del Rey, Supercopa de Espana and UEFA Super Cup commitments, Madrid will participate in seven different competitions this season and could play up to 71 games.

READ THE LATEST REAL MADRID NEWS, TRANSFER RUMOURS & GOSSIP