Real Madrid Defender Hospitalized After Reporting Alarming Symptom

A relatively swift return to full health is still not out of the question.

Álvaro Arbeloa does not have a full squad right now. | Chris Brunskill/Fantasista/Getty Images

Real Madrid defender Raúl Asencio will miss a second successive match in the coming days after being diagnosed with a digestive infection that saw him admitted to hospital for tests.

Asencio has not been regularly starting matches because of head and calf injuries in March, but his absence even from the bench when Los Blancos were knocked out of the Champions League by Bayern Munich on Wednesday night still came as an unexplained surprise.

Real Madrid reported the discovery of bacterial enterocolitis, an inflammation of both intestines. It is typically associated with young children or those who might be immunocompromised.

The club confirmed Asencio is being treated at home, but an earlier report from El Partizado de COPE revealed that alarming weight loss—six kilograms (more than 13 pounds) in only two weeks—had led the player briefly to hospital to get the answers he needed.

---

Raúl Asencio Recovery Timeline

Raúl Asencio has been suffering with an unpleasant illness. | Dennis Agyeman/Europa Press/Getty Images

Asencio didn’t make the trip to Munich, where Real Madrid’s Champions League dream for this season ended. The team didn’t have a match this weekend, but it will be too soon for the Spaniard to be healthy enough for selection against Alavés on Tuesday.

The hope for Asencio is that he recovers by the time Los Blancos face Real Betis on Friday.

The more concerning aspect of this is that Asencio was ruled out for a period at the end of November with a similar gastro illness. He has also missed other matches with separate instances of fever and flu in the intervening months.

In the short-term, Real Madrid are well stocked with defensive depth, especially since Éder Militão’s recent return from a lengthy layoff. Against Bayern, it was Militão and Antonio Rüdiger who started together at center back, with Dean Huijsen and David Alaba cover options on the bench.

Asencio wasn’t missed in Munich, arguably fifth choice when everyone is healthy. But center backs being available isn’t something Real Madrid have been able to rely on in the past few seasons and midfielder Aurélien Tchouaméni notably played the position in the Spanish Super Cup final.

---

Real Madrid Facing Tough Recruitment Decisions

Éder Militão is back from his latest injury absence. | Jose Breton/Pics Action/NurPhoto/Getty Images

The defense could look very different as soon as next season. Rüdiger and Alaba are out of contract this coming June and both 33-year-olds being handed fresh terms feels unlikely.

Notwithstanding his health issues, there have also been doubts this season about Asencio and whether he is ultimately up to the level of being a Real Madrid player long-term.

But, with Huijsen still young and Militão often injured, a cull of the others risks leaving recruitment executives too much work to do ahead of next season. Elite center backs are expensive—even just signing raw potential like Huijsen last summer cost almost $70 million.

Bearing in mind that midfield is also short after not replacing Toni Kroos or Luka Modrić in successive summer, and another winger would be preferable, too, some tough prioritizing needs to happen.

---