Who will replace Kylian Mbappe in Real Madrid’s starting lineup for the derby?

Kylian Mbappe had a strong start to his career at Real Madrid (was there ever any doubt?), but he is now out for around three weeks with a hamstring injury.

The 25-year-old Frenchman has scored seven goals and provided one assist in his first nine games for Madrid in all competitions – including a goal on his debut for the European champions in the UEFA Super Cup win over Europa League champions Atalanta in August.

On Tuesday night, Madrid did their hard work with a 3-2 home win against Alaves and Mbappe was sent off with 10 minutes to play (when Carlo Ancelotti’s side were 3-0 up).

Go deeper

Mbappe is out for three weeks with a thigh injury and will miss the Madrid derby

Arda Güler came on as a substitute – but the 19-year-old from Turkey is just one of the options to join the team in the coming weeks. Ancelotti could instead rely on 18-year-old Brazilian Endrick or even change the formation to accommodate the ageless Luka Modric.

Let’s take a look at who could replace Mbappe in Madrid’s starting XI.

Endrick

Many Madrid fans would like to see more from Endrick – he has already scored twice and won a (controversial) penalty against Espanyol in his own debut season in Madrid, despite only spending 47 minutes on the pitch in seven appearances.

But Ancelotti is not the type of coach to field such raw and inexperienced talent – at least not in a game as crucial as Sunday’s La Liga game at Atlético Madrid. Madrid were already four points behind leaders Barcelona before Tuesday’s win (Barca play Getafe at home tonight) – and victory over Alaves means they are unbeaten in Spain’s top flight in 39 games. The last time they lost? A year ago yesterday at Atlético’s Metropolitano Stadium.

Ancelotti had suggested Endrick would make his first start in one of Madrid’s last two games against Espanyol and Alaves, but that didn’t happen. He would lose a potentially game-changing option on the bench if the teenager started against Atlético.

Endrick has been a substitute so far (Mateo Villalba/Getty Images)

Before Mbappe’s injury, the coaching staff had already discussed the possibility of changing Madrid’s 4-3-3 system and using a fourth midfielder in a 4-4-2 this week. Endrick would have even less chance of starting in this case, as Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo are the first choice strikers.

“Balance is a collective work: you can achieve it with two or three strikers,” Ancelotti said at a press conference before the Espanyol game last Saturday when asked about a possible system change. “I remember in Paris in the Champions League (the 2021/22 final against Liverpool) we played with three strikers but we had perfect balance.

“Adding an extra midfielder does not guarantee more control. Balance can be achieved through a compact team that sacrifices and fights.”

Luka Modric

That brings us nicely to Modric. The Croatian seems the most likely option to replace Mbappe if Madrid want to use four midfielders against Atletico – but there’s a catch.

Modric started that 3-1 defeat at Atlético at the start of last season alongside Toni Kroos in a diamond formation. Madrid were overrun and the defeat forced Ancelotti to change his system and use Jude Bellingham and Federico Valverde as midfielders who would protect the full-backs when the team defended. Modric sat on the bench for most of the season and started just 23 of a possible 53 games as Madrid won the La Liga-Champions League double.

The athlete reported that Modric was unhappy with such a secondary role and said he was not warned that he would play so little when he signed his previous contract extension in the summer of 2023. There were doubts about whether he would stay – but in May he was agreed a further one-year extension. This followed Kroos’ shocking decision to retire from football in the summer at the age of 34, although Modric’s contract extension had nothing to do with it.

Modric, who turned 39 two weeks ago, has only started three games this season but Ancelotti believes he is a safe choice given his constant ambition. The coaching staff still believes that he is in peak physical condition and can easily play 90 minutes or more, especially if there are games in between where he is rested. So far in the 2024/25 season he appears to be more important, having played 353 minutes, compared to 287 minutes at the same stage last season.

Modric, now the club’s captain following the departure of Nacho in the summer, is the favorite to start on Sunday after coming on as a substitute in the final 20 minutes of Alaves’ win.

Arda Güler

Güler delighted fans who played for Turkey at the European Championships this summer and has continued that form this season. However, he only started three of Madrid’s nine games. He is not a physical player and lacks experience, both of which work against him in such a big game.

Guler has been exciting this season but may not start against Atletico (David S. Bustamante/Real Madrid via Getty Images)

Ancelotti has said publicly that Guler can help build play and could start in a deeper role, but he has been used as an attacking midfielder in the eight games he played in all competitions. He has even less chance of playing there as Bellingham and Valverde are expected to occupy the front midfield areas against Atlético and someone with more defensive power is needed in deep midfield alongside Aurelien Tchouameni.

Guler will have plenty of opportunities to play this season, but a key game against Atlético is not an ideal scenario for the young player.

Camavinga is on his way back from a knee injury sustained in training ahead of the Super Cup, meaning he is yet to play this season.

The 21-year-old French midfielder is expected to be fit enough to make Sunday’s matchday squad but it seems unlikely Ancelotti will use him after a month-and-a-half break. The only argument for doing this without being 100 percent fit would be that Modric struggled with Atlético’s speed in the same game last year – but it still wouldn’t make much sense.

(Top photos: Getty Images)