Madrid robbed of Robben and Heinze

Real Madrid CF winger Arjen Robben will be out of action for around six weeks while Gabriel Heinze is facing up to three weeks on the sidelines after both players suffered pulled thigh muscles while on international duty.

Painful cameo
The 23-year-old Robben, signed this summer from Chelsea FC, came on as a substitute for Rafael van der Vaart in the Netherlands' 2-0 win against Slovenia on Wednesday night before being forced off through injury in the 63rd minute. He could miss as many as seven league games, as well as his side's UEFA Champions League double-header against Olympiacos CFP and the Matchday 5 fixture against Werder Bremen. Robben is also expected to miss the Netherlands' final UEFA EURO 2008™ Group G qualifiers against Luxembourg and Belarus on 17 and 21 November. The one-time PSV Eindhoven prodigy has made four Primera División games this season and two more in UEFA Champions League Group C.

Heinze out
Heinze, meanwhile, will need between two and three weeks to recover having also pulled his left thigh muscle in Argentina's 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifying match against Chile last Saturday. The 29-year-old defender, who moved to Madrid from Manchester United FC in the summer, missed Wednesday's game against Venezuela due to the problem. Madrid play Olympiacos at home on Matchday 3 on 24 October.