Mbappé injures knee with France, Real Madrid hopes to have him ready for Villarreal

The goal came in the 54th minute, putting France up 1-0 over Turkey, but the celebration didn't last long. On a right-footed finish, Kylian Mbappé planted his left leg awkwardly and came away feeling something. The moment, barely visible on the replay, ended up turning into a headache for Real Madrid.

The French forward left his national team's camp and returned to Madrid to be examined by the club's medical staff. The diagnosis is now official: hyperextension of the posterior capsule of the left knee. Nothing too serious, but enough to keep him out for 10 to 12 days.

Real Madrid confirmed it themselves in a short statement, the kind that doesn't leave much room for interpretation:

Following tests carried out today on our player Kylian Mbappé by Real Madrid's medical staff, he has been diagnosed with a hyperextension of the posterior capsule of the left knee. Subject to further evaluation.Real Madrid

The first thing to accept is that Mbappé will miss France's next three matches. There's no getting around that. The question that really matters at the Bernabéu is a different one: will he be ready for the club's return to league play?

The Villarreal match, circled on the calendar

If everything progresses as expected, without setbacks or relapses, the Frenchman could be available when Real Madrid resumes competition on October 10 against Villarreal at the Santiago Bernabéu. On paper at least, the timeline gives him just enough time to make that match.

Still, with this kind of injury the key word is always the same: progress. The club put it in writing, and that's no accident. It remains to be seen how the knee responds in the coming days before any firm return date is confirmed.

Konaté also came back hurt

Mbappé wasn't the only one to return with physical problems from the French camp. Ibrahima Konaté also left the national team early and flew back to Madrid. In his case, the diagnosis points to an injury to the collateral ligament of the right leg, though the club has not yet given a specific recovery timeline.

Two significant absences, then, right after an international break that had seemed to be going smoothly. Real Madrid will now have to manage the coming weeks without two key players, hoping that at least one of them, Mbappé, will be back in time for the match against Villarreal.