Vinícius, Endrick and Brahim Back in Training with Real Madrid Ahead of Villarreal Clash

Valdebebas is filling back up, little by little. With the last day of the FIFA window already here, Jose Mourinho welcomed back more players for the team's second training session of the week, and among those who stepped onto the pitch were some big names: Vinicius Junior, Endrick and Brahim Diaz.

The trio joined a group that had already become a fixture over the past few days: Eder Militao, Alvaro Carreras, Antonio Rudiger, Aurelien Tchouameni, Thibaut Courtois and Andriy Lunin, all first-team players who simply weren't called up by their national teams during the break. Also training with the group was Thiago Pitarch, who had a busy break splitting time between Castilla and Spain's U20 squad.

Vinicius and Endrick's situation comes down to Brazil's schedule: both played in three friendlies, drawing one and winning another against Australia before closing things out with a resounding 4-0 win over India on October 3. Brahim, meanwhile, picked up minutes with Morocco in an Africa Cup of Nations qualifier as well as in his national team's friendly last Sunday.

Dutch defender Denzel Dumfries also joined that group. And there was another bit of news that surely brought some relief to the coaching staff: Ibrahima Konate, who had to leave the France camp on September 24 with an injury to the collateral ligament in his right leg, already worked with the group, both in the gym and on the pitch.

The session for available players opened with activation exercises, moved on to speed and finishing work, two-on-two attack versus defense duels, and wrapped up with running drills and small-sided games, according to the club's own report on the day's training.

Who's Still Missing

Not everyone is back yet. Eduardo Camavinga, Yan Diomande, Arda Guler and Bernardo Silva are still away with their national teams. Several Madrid players still have matches ahead of them too: Spaniards Dean Huijsen and Marc Cucurella could feature this Tuesday against Croatia (Carlos Espi was left out of that squad), while Jude Bellingham and Trent Alexander-Arnold still have England's match against the Czech Republic to play, also on Tuesday.

Beyond the internationals, the recovery list remains open as well. Raul Asencio and Kylian Mbappe picked up injuries during the break and are working their way back, while Fede Valverde, Ferland Mendy and Rodrygo continue their rehab; the latter two have been popping up intermittently in training sessions, always working apart from the main group. Mbappe did the same on Monday afternoon, arriving at Valdebebas straight after his injury with hopes of being ready in time for the team's next official match.

All of this roster movement points toward one specific date: Saturday, October 10, when Real Madrid hosts Villarreal at the Santiago Bernabeu for matchday 8 of LaLiga. Mourinho's side currently sit fourth in the standings, 6 points behind league leaders Barcelona.