However, due to persistent pain, Mbappé had sought a second opinion in Paris, where he used to live, after which he and a knee specialist opted for a different approach to his recovery. The former PSG player has since even returned to the pitch.
The misdiagnosis in Madrid had also left Mbappé “furious”. As The Athletic reported on Tuesday, the medical team made an embarrassing mistake: they scanned the wrong leg of the Frenchman on the MRI – and naturally gave the all-clear after no problems could be detected.
The misdiagnosis was then also a decisive factor in the dismissal of the medical staff at the start of the year. As a result, following his dismissal at the end of 2023, Dr Niko Mihic was rehired as head of the department, after the team had only been reorganised last summer. Staff changes in Real’s medical department are by no means uncommon as soon as those in charge complain of too many injuries. In addition to Mbappé, Jude Bellingham and Álvaro Carreras, among others, have also been absent in recent weeks.
In this regard, RMC reporter Daniel Riolo used strong words on the programme "L'After Foot". "It is an absolute disgrace for Real what has happened there. (...) This misdiagnosis could have had far more serious consequences, as it took Mbappé a long time to find out what was wrong with him. He was active elsewhere, even played a few matches, without knowing exactly what was wrong with him. He could have ruined his knee." A special muscle-building programme, which he devised with the aforementioned Parisian knee specialist, ultimately turned things around.