Atletico mocks Real Madrid over Valverde's lightning-fast recovery

Twenty days. That's how long, according to Real Madrid itself, Federico Valverde needed to recover from an ankle sprain classified as "grade three," the most severe injury on the medical scale. And yet there he was, named in the squad for the match against Villarreal at the Bernabeu. Atletico Madrid wasn't about to let that slide.

The story began in the Madrid derby, right before the break for FIFA dates. A challenge from Kang-in Lee left Valverde injured, and Spain's refereeing committee later admitted the play should have resulted in a red card. Mourinho himself didn't hold back either: at his post-match press conference, he pulled out a printed photo of the incident to back up his complaint to reporters.

The fallout didn't stop at the protest. Real Madrid confirmed the sprain was grade three, an injury involving a complete ligament tear that typically keeps players out for several weeks, if not months, before they can return to the field.

So when Valverde's name turned up on the squad list to host Villarreal in LaLiga's first game back from the break, more than a few eyebrows went up. And Atletico, true to form, fired back with some irony on social media as soon as the squad list broke.

We'd like to congratulate Real Madrid for continuing to make history, proving that 100% of the world's medical community was wrong.Atletico de Madrid (via social media)

The post, published on Friday, captures the tone the Rojiblancos tend to take whenever their crosstown rivals are involved. This isn't the first time Atletico has made hay out of situations like this: this summer, when Barcelona showed interest in Julian Alvarez, the Colchoneros responded with a string of fake offers and plenty of jokes aimed at Barca's own players. And when Mourinho pulled out that printed photo after the derby, Atletico fired back with a post referencing a printer.

Jab aside, the Valverde case leaves a lingering question for anyone paying close attention to injuries of this kind: how does a sprain that should have ruled him out for weeks lead to such a rapid recovery? The club hasn't offered any further details on the player's medical progress, but his presence in the squad to face Villarreal speaks for itself.

Injury and refereeing controversy aside, the fact remains that Valverde is available again for Mourinho just fifteen days after the challenge that caused so much uproar. And while Real Madrid celebrates the swift recovery of one of its key players, Atletico is making sure nobody forgets just how fast that process was.