Eden Hazard's injury woes continue to plague the Belgian playmaker at Real Madrid after he was forced from the field during their defeat against Levante in La Liga on Saturday.
The striker has struggled for fitness following his move to the Spanish capital from Chelsea and looks to have been dealt a further blow ahead of their Champions League clash with Manchester City.
The 29-year-old was making only his 10th league appearance of the term when he was taken off just beyond the hour-mark, as the visitors slipped to a 1-0 loss at Ciutat de Valencia.
After limping from the pitch, the Belgian had a brief conversation with manager Zinedine Zidane before taking his place on the bench in visible dismay.
Hazard, who captained his country to a third-place finish in 2018’s World Cup in Russia, arrived at Santiago Bernabeu with much fanfare ahead of the current campaign, full of promise as a new guiding light for Madrid’s attack.
His chances have been stymied though by a succession of injury problems, initially missing their season opener with a thigh strain which delayed his league debut until mid-September.
He was then sidelined for the best part of three months in November with an ankle injury sustained in a tackle from Thomas Meunier during Madrid’s Champions League clash with Paris Saint-Germain.
Hazard’s lay-off meant he missed several key ties for Zidane’s side, including their first El Clasico of the campaign, their Supercopa de Espana win and their Copa del Rey exit.
He made his return only days ago, against Celta Vigo on February 16, but now looks poised, just under a week later, to be back on the sidelines once again.
The attacker’s problems stand in sharp contrast to his days at Stamford Bridge, where he missed only a clutch of Premier League games throughout his full tenure with the Blues.
Madrid meanwhile are still contending with the long-term absence of Marco Asensio, though they welcomed back James Rodriguez for their clash this weekend.
They will look to press the early advantage against Pep Guardiola’s visitors on Wednesday, as the English champions look to challenge on the European front once again this season.
The two sides will meet in the reverse clash on March 17 as they vie for a place in the quarter-finals.