Real Madrid star facing race against time to be fit to face Man City

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Real Madrid star facing race against time to be fit to face Man City

Real Madrid's hopes of securing a Champions League and Copa del Rey double may be dealt a blow as defender David Alaba is facing a race against time to recover from injury.

The centre-back suffered a calf problem during the 2-0 win over Chelsea in the quarter-final return leg of the Champions League on Tuesday, and was replaced at half-time by Antonio Rudiger.

ESPN report that test conducted on Alaba revealed a small muscle tear in his right calf, which will reportedly keep him sidelined for at least 10 days.

Carlo Ancelotti will hope that the defender will be able to recover in time for the Copa del Rey final against Osasuna on May 6 and the first leg of their Champions League semi-final against Manchester City three days later at the Santiago Bernabeu.

Rudiger is expected to continue at the heart of defence while the Austrian recovers. The German has had a stop-start first season in the Spanish capital after joining from Chelsea on a free transfer last summer.

Alaba, who has made 34 appearances across all competitions for Real Madrid this season, has missed just one Champions League game so far.

Real Madrid are currently second in La Liga, 11 points behind leaders Barcelona with nine games remaining.