Carvajal's 269-day journey, the "bond" with his two sons, and a dressing room without a "beacon": "When he speaks, everyone falls silent."

" When he speaks, everyone falls silent ." Dani Carvajal returned to the Real Madrid squad last Tuesday against Juventus in the World Cup round of 16, 269 days after suffering a triple tear of his right knee : the anterior cruciate ligament, the external collateral ligament, and the popliteal tendon. A devastating combination. During those months, the Real Madrid dressing room has suffered on and off the pitch without its main "beacon," as they call him, and the full-back has found in his family and his maturity a new way of approaching sport and life.

Today he will return to the bench, still waiting a few weeks to recover the physical form and competitive rhythm necessary to compete with Alexander-Arnold , or with one of the three central defenders, for a place in the starting eleven. But Xabi Alonso wants him close to the group, on the bus, in the locker room, in the hotel... That's why, when the pressure was most on Carlo Ancelotti and the squad for much of this season, the Italian and the players asked Carvajal , who was in the middle of his recovery process, with a resounding "come with us." And Dani went. He was at the Valdebebas training camp before the Champions League matches against Atlético at the Metropolitano and Arsenal at the Bernabéu, and also at La Cartuja for the Copa del Rey final .

"It's been hard surviving without him."

In a group that has been losing key figures in recent years, such as Sergio Ramos and Casemiro , and in which the captains who have inherited the armband have been more leaders on the pitch than on a day-to-day basis, such as Benzema and Modric , Carvajal, and in a background Lucas Vázquez , have taken control of the squad. That's why Ancelotti wanted the Madrid native back on the road as soon as possible, because he needed a voice when his own wasn't enough for his players. "There were no key figures in the group who had Dani's energy; it's been hard to survive without him on a day-to-day basis ," they explained at Valdebebas. The season didn't end well, but Carvajal's presence laid the foundations for the medium-term future: without Modric, the armband will be his and the leadership will also be material.

That's why Xabi Alonso didn't hesitate to include him in the trip to the United States, a small summer camp for Madrid in this new phase, although the Tolosa native's plan is not to force him into any matches. " He's the one who gives the first and last shout . He's been the first captain for a long time, even though he wasn't," they say from the Real Madrid training camp in Palm Beach.

"I've never missed anyone as much as I miss my children here."

Carvajal entered the tunnel on October 5th, in the final minutes of the Real Madrid-Villarreal match, after a fortuitous challenge from Yeremi Pino. He began to see the light at the end of the tunnel on March 19th, five months later, when he put on football boots again and stepped onto the turf of one of the adjacent pitches at Valdebebas, the one closest to the one used by the first team. That, the fact that he was able to get back to his teammates on a daily basis, and the fact that he had more time to spend with his wife and two children —a curious contradiction—have accelerated the mental and footballing steps of his rehabilitation and brought him closer to the group.

"If I had suffered the injury earlier, it would have bothered me a lot more . I've had a more stable recovery, setting short-term goals, and I've been able to enjoy my children. I haven't traveled this year, and I've been able to bond with them spectacularly, honestly. I've never missed anyone as much as I did them on this trip to the Club World Cup," he reflected to the media in Miami.

Thin leg without muscle mass

The US tournament has been his "challenge" since undergoing surgery in October. Eight months away from such a serious knee injury may seem like a short time, but Carvajal wanted to be just another player in Palm Beach . He didn't want to watch the World Cup or the first few weeks of living with Alonso from the Valdebebas infirmary.

The triple fracture left his leg very thin and almost devoid of muscle mass, with significantly atrophied fibers. In fact, in the Real Madrid team's World Cup sessions, a certain difference between his two legs is still noticeable. "The important thing is that the knee hasn't caused any complications, knowing that you're usually not at your optimal level of fitness and spark until a year is up, but I feel fine," he added. Madrid's "beacon" is back.