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Real Madrid's Mbappé has limited training session ahead of Man City match in Champions League

Sport

Real Madrid's Mbappé has limited training session ahead of Man City match in Champions League
Sport

Sport

Real Madrid's Mbappé has limited training session ahead of Man City match in Champions League

2025-12-10 00:14 Last Updated At:00:31

MADRID (AP) — Kylian Mbappé trained separately from his Real Madrid teammates on Tuesday, putting in doubt his availability for the Champions League match against Manchester City on Wednesday.

Madrid said Mbappé trained indoors as the rest of the squad worked on the pitch under the command of coach Xabi Alonso.

Mbappé, who has 25 goals for Madrid this season, has been nursing a left leg ailment, according to Spanish media. He is the leading scorer both in the Spanish league and the Champions League.

Madrid has won only two of its last seven matches across all tournaments. It is coming off a 2-0 home loss to Celta Vigo in the Spanish league on Sunday. In the Champions League, it won 4-3 at Olympiakos after losing 1-0 at Liverpool.

“We’ve drawn our conclusions about the Celta game, and now we’re only thinking about City,” Alonso said Tuesday. "It’s the Champions League, we’re playing at the (Santiago) Bernabeu (stadium), and I’m sure the atmosphere will be special and different because of the energy that is created. That’s what’s in our heads right now.”

Madrid sits in fifth place after five matches in the league phase of the Champions League. It is two points ahead of ninth-place Man City.

Sunday's loss to Celta was Madrid's first home defeat of the season.

Alonso dismissed Spanish media suggestions that he has lost control of the locker room and that some players have not been satisfied with his work.

“This is a team, and we all stand together,” he said. "When you’re a Real Madrid coach, you have to be prepared to enjoy these situations calmly and responsibly. I’m looking forward to everything that’s to come, which starts tomorrow. We started closing the book on the Celta game yesterday, and today it’s just about City. In soccer, you can change perspective quickly, and we’re at that point.”

Midfielder Aurélien Tchouaméni said Alonso can't be blamed for the team's recent struggles.

“We’re all together,” he said. "If we want to win games, we all have to fight, coach and team in the same direction. It’s us who are on the pitch, and we have to do things better out there. We have a good opportunity to change the dynamic and pick up more points in the Champions League.

“Against Celta, for sure, the coach had a good game plan, but in the end, the players are the ones on the pitch, and if we play at our level, we have a better chance of winning," Tchouaméni said. "If we lose 0-2, it’s because there was a problem on the pitch, like intensity or technical fouls. It’s not the coach’s fault. We have to improve, and that’s what we’re going to do.”

Alonso has been dealing with several defensive injuries and on Wednesday will be without defender Éder Militão, who was hurt in the first half of the game against Celta. Midfielder Eduardo Camavinga also trained separately on Tuesday.

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

Real Madrid's Kylian Mbappe reacts during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Real Madrid and Celta Vigo in Madrid, Spain, Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

Real Madrid's Kylian Mbappe reacts during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Real Madrid and Celta Vigo in Madrid, Spain, Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

Real Madrid's Kylian Mbappe reacts during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Real Madrid and Celta Vigo in Madrid, Spain, Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

Real Madrid's Kylian Mbappe reacts during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Real Madrid and Celta Vigo in Madrid, Spain, Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

Real Madrid's Kylian Mbappe reacts during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Real Madrid and Celta Vigo in Madrid, Spain, Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

Real Madrid's Kylian Mbappe reacts during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Real Madrid and Celta Vigo in Madrid, Spain, Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

NEW YORK (AP) — After a yearslong legal battle, U.S. prosecutors told the Supreme Court on Tuesday that they want to give up their fight to preserve the convictions of a former Fox executive and South American sports media company in a corruption case related to TV rights for international soccer tournaments.

Hernan Lopez, ex-CEO of Fox International Channels, and Full Play Group SA were convicted in 2023 after a trial in New York but subsequently granted an acquittal by a judge.

An appeals court reinstated the convictions in July, but additional appeals followed and the fate of the prosecution was uncertain.

Prosecutors told the Supreme Court that the government has now determined that “dismissal of this criminal case is in the interests of justice,” though they did not expand on their rationale. They asked for the case to be sent back to a lower court so it can consider a motion to dismiss the indictment.

Attorneys who have represented Full Play and Lopez did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The filing followed a previous high court decision that has made it more difficult to secure corruption convictions, as well as a Trump administration overhaul of its approach to enforcement of public graft.

The federal government has moved this year to slash a section of Justice Department prosecutors responsible for pursing cases of fraud and corruption against public officials, and President Donald Trump previously paused a statute that prohibits people or companies operating in the U.S. from giving money or gifts to officials in other countries to win or retain deals.

The U.S. is set to host the 2026 World Cup along with Canada and Mexico. Trump, a Republican, has a close relationship with Gianni Infantino, president of the world soccer governing body FIFA, and last week was awarded a new FIFA peace prize.

FILE - Former 21st Century Fox executive Hernan Lopez arrives at federal court, Jan. 17, 2023, in the Brooklyn borough of New York. (AP Photo/John Minchillo, File)

FILE - Former 21st Century Fox executive Hernan Lopez arrives at federal court, Jan. 17, 2023, in the Brooklyn borough of New York. (AP Photo/John Minchillo, File)

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