Julian Alvarez has travelled for Atletico Madrid’s Champions League semi-final second leg against Arsenal, but he was seen testing his ankle on Monday night.
Photo by Fran Santiago/Getty Images
Julian Alvarez was forced off with an ankle injury in the second half of Atletico Madrid’s Champions League semi-final first leg match against Arsenal last Wednesday, subsequently missing their match in La Liga at the weekend.
Alvarez then travelled with the Atletico squad to London on Monday, joining the team for training at the Emirates Stadium. But his spot in the starting lineup remains in doubt, particularly as he was seen testing his ankle ahead of training.
Photo by Fran Santiago/Getty Images
Journalists in attendance at the Emirates spotted Alvarez working alone with Atletico physiotherapist Oscar Pitillas, doing various exercises to test his ankle before taking part in training with the rest of the squad.
From an Atletico point of view, an optimistic take on the situation would be that the tests proved Alvarez was fit enought to take part in the session.
On the other hand, the fact he still requires special treatment just 24 hours before the game must make him a doubt to play through the match to the final whistle. Given the 26-year-old’s importance to Atletico as their top scorer, that could be significant.
Photo by Denis Doyle/Getty Images
Nicolas Gonzalez and Pablo Barrios will certainly be absent, as they weren’t named in the travelling squad. They won’t be making their injury comebacks against Arsenal on Tuesday night.
But Jose Maria Gimenez has travelled, despite missing the first leg of the semi-final and Atletico’s match against Valencia at the weekend. That suggests he’s on the verge of an injury comeback, but it may be too much to immediately throw him into the starting lineup after eight games out.
