Since his injury in December of last year, it’s only a few weeks until David Alaba clocks one year out. The Austrian international picked up an unfortunate ACL injury, while Real Madrid took on Villarreal last year.

While there is no initial return date scheduled for Alaba yet, Spanish journalist Rodra for newspaper Relevo has shed light on the defender’s situation. His latest update though will be far from the news expected by the madrid faithfuls.

Alaba not returning anytime soon.

According to the source, Alaba’s recovery has raised eyebrows at the club. It has been very slow so far and we are not expected to see the player anytime soon.

Indeed, ACL injuries usually take upto 6-8 months for recovery, but Alaba’s case seems to be peculiar. David Alaba’s current knee injury relates to reduced cartilage, which causes his knee bones to rub together, resulting in significant pain and discomfort.

This type of injury is often linked to conditions like osteoarthritis and chondromalacia patellae. Initially scheduled for an October return, his recovery was postponed to mid November, then January and now unknown.

Real Madrid back Alaba fully.

One of the main reasons Real Madrid didn’t sign a defender last summer, is because the club was anticipating Alaba’s return. Despite the hard times befalling the player, Real Madrid continues to exercise patience, showing total support to the player.

However, with the latest status of his recovery, it will be interesting to see if the los blancos enter the market. The upcoming winter transfer window presents a savoury opportunity for Carlo Ancelotti’s side to go for improvement.

From a fan’s point of view, it will be completely logical should the club enter the market this January. With just Militão and Rüdiger as the senior CB options, coupling with how awful the team has defended, it won’t surprise me one bit if we were to sign someone.