Kylian Mbappe’s knee injury was misdiagnosed after Real Madrid medical staff performed an MRI scan on the wrong leg back in December.
When no problem was found after a scan of his uninjured right knee, the 27-year-old featured in three games for Madrid before the mistake was realised and rectified.
Sources with first-hand knowledge of the situation — who, like all those consulted for this article, asked to speak anonymously as they did not have permission to comment — said Mbappe continued playing after that initial erroneous scan despite having signs of inflammation in his injured left knee.
A further scan on his left leg then showed a partial posterior knee ligament tear, and on December 31, Madrid published a medical report consistent with that, although they described the injury in more general terms as a knee sprain.
It is unclear how the initial mistake was made. Real Madrid and Mbappe’s representatives were approached for comment on this story.
Mbappe’s troublesome knee
The first signs of Mbappe’s knee problem came after Madrid’s 2-0 La Liga defeat at home to Celta Vigo on December 7. Sources among the club’s coaching staff back then said it came about after Mbappe suffered a blow to his knee in the match.
On December 10, the striker was an unused substitute for Madrid’s home Champions League game with Manchester City, but he then played the full 90 minutes in all three of Madrid’s remaining games of 2025, eventually equalling Cristiano Ronaldo’s club record of 59 goals in a calendar year.
When Mbappe returned to training after the Christmas break on December 30, he was seen touching his left knee as he spoke to medical staff. A day later, Madrid published their medical update with the knee sprain diagnosis — adding that a “conservative” recovery plan would be followed.
Following that, Mbappe did not travel with the squad to Saudi Arabia for their Supercopa de Espana semi-final against city rivals Atletico Madrid, although he did then join the team for the final against Barcelona on January 11, coming off the bench for the final 14 minutes of a 3-2 defeat that ultimately cost Xabi Alonso the head coach’s job.
The Frenchman then played in eight of Madrid’s next 10 matches, scoring nine goals, with the last of these coming on February 21. During this time, new Madrid boss Alvaro Arbeloa said that Mbappe’s involvement was being closely monitored, and his workload was reduced in training.
“We’re taking it day by day,” Arbeloa said of Mbappe’s fitness before a home La Liga fixture with Getafe on March 2. “It depends on how he’s feeling. We want him back at 100 per cent.”
Mbappe did not play in that game — the second match in a run of five Madrid fixtures he missed. He instead travelled to Paris for further tests and treatment on his knee injury, accompanied by Madrid medical staff.
Madrid’s wider injury issues
Madrid president Florentino Perez has overseen changes to the club’s physical training and medical departments, with trusted fitness coach Antonio Pintus brought back, as well as head of medical services Dr Niko Mihic. Injuries have still been a problem for the team under new coach Arbeloa, however.
After Mbappe’s trip to Paris, Madrid published another medical update, which reconfirmed the diagnosis they had shared on December 31, repeating that a “conservative recovery plan” would be followed.
One person who works at Madrid’s training ground told The Athletic back in February that on some days Mbappe had felt fine and on others he had been in pain, which would explain how he has been able to make several appearances since the problem first appeared.
Another source familiar with Mbappe’s diagnosis said his knee was not showing signs of instability, so it was not deemed a risk for him to be playing when not in pain.
The Frenchman made his latest return from injury in last Tuesday’s Champions League 2-1 victory at City, a result that meant Madrid progressed to the quarter-finals as 5-1 winners on aggregate. He came off the bench in that game to play 21 minutes, and did so again in Sunday’s 3-2 home win over Atletico, playing 26 minutes.
Mbappe is now on international duty with France, who are playing two friendlies, against Brazil on March 26 and Colombia on March 29, in the United States.
