MADRID, Aug. 16 (Xinhua) -- Real Madrid will be without this summer's biggest signing until after the international break in September, as the club confirmed on Friday that Eden Hazard has torn a muscle in his left thigh.
The Real Madrid club website published an official communique which explained; "following tests carried out after training today, our player Eden Hazard has been diagnosed the Real Madrid Medical Team with a lesion in the recto anterior muscle of the left thigh."
Although the club refused to give a date for Hazard's return, he will certainly miss Saturday's Liga Santander opener away to Celta Vigo and almost certainly the two league games before the next international break, which are against Valladolid and Villarreal.
Hazard has been the most effective of the club's summer signings and the only one who was likely to start in Vigo after Ferland Mendy also suffered a muscle injury, while Luka Jovic has so far struggled for form.
Speaking to the press on Friday, Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane implied that he was willing to count on James Rodriguez and Gareth Bale, who the club have been trying to move on all summer.
The French coach said James was "in form and that I am happy to have him in my squad. I am going to count on everyone who is here."
When asked about Bale he commented "it looked as if he was going to leave, but he is still here. Things change and I am going to count on him and I hope that, as with all of the other players, he makes it difficult for me to pick the team."
