Being the most important game of the season for Real Madrid, Carlo Ancelotti would not have a lot of doubts about which team he is going to field for the upcoming UEFA Champions League final against Borussia Dortmund.
However, there is still one starting position that has generated some debate among the fans for this big game, i.e., the goalkeeper. Thibaut Courtois, after having spent almost the entire season on the sidelines with a long-term injury, returned to action in the last few weeks and has continued with the same good form that he had shown before suffering this injury.
During his absence, Andriy Lunin had made this position his own, relegating Kepa to the bench, and had left very little room for complaint. He was key in the team’s run-up to the Champions League final, being the hero in the three knock-out ties against RB Leipzig, Manchester City, and Bayern Munich.
But only a few days before this match, this problem might have been solved for Ancelotti as MARCA reports that Lunin has been suffering from influenza and has not been able to train with the team for the last three days.
Thus, he will not be traveling with the team to London this Thursday, but will join up with his teammates on Friday or Saturday.
The problem is not very serious, as the report claims that Lunin has almost recovered from it, but has not gotten in contact with the team to minimize the risk of contagion. Once this risk is 100% eliminated, he will travel to England and start preparing with the team for the final.
Meanwhile, the images published by Real Madrid of its latest training session on Wednesday showed both Courtois and Kepa training with the group. Thus, even with Lunin’s absence, the team is well covered for this position. However, the Ukrainian deserves to be with his teammates in the final as without his contributions, the team would not have been able to get to this stage.