Real Madrid head coach Alvaro Arbeloa said on Friday he was «confident» Kylian Mbappe will be available to face Manchester City in the second leg of the UEFA Champions League last 16 tie.
“He’s getting better every day,” Arbeloa said at a news conference. «He won’t be there tomorrow (Saturday, in La Liga against Elche), but I am confident he will be traveling to Manchester.»
With Mbappe sidelined by a knee injury and a number of other key players missing, Real defeated City 3-0 in the first leg at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium on Wednesday, thanks to a Federico Valverde hat-trick.
City host the second leg next Tuesday and are at risk of being knocked out of Europe by Madrid for the third season in a row.
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France striker Mbappe, hampered by a left knee sprain since late December, has not played since withdrawing from the squad to face Benfica in the second leg of the Champions League play-off round on February 25 psf2.
Mbappé has scored 38 goals in 33 games for his club this season.
His expected return to Madrid comes before the international break, where the France national football team will face the Brazilian national football team and the Colombia national football team in friendlies ahead of the World Cup in the United States.
Published on March 13, 2026
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