Sergio Ramos steps up recovery ahead of Real Madrid vs Leganes but Dani Ceballos suffers injury

Real Madrid captain Sergio Ramos is edging closer to making his long-awaited return to action after completing his first full training session since suffering a soleus injury earlier this month.

The news is a major boost for Zinedine Zidane ahead of a crucial week in which Los Blancos will host Leganes in the Copa del Rey quarter-final second-leg tie on Wednesday night [24 January], three days before a La Liga trip Valencia.

Ramos, 31, has not played a game since the Real's disappointing 3-0 defeat to Barcelona on 23 December.

The Spain international returned fully fit from the Christmas break but an injury sustained while training on 4 January has prevented him from making any single appearance in 2018.

Ramos has missed Real's six last games as a result but returned to full training on Monday and could be back in contention either to face Leganes on Wednesday or when Los Blancos visit Mestalla on Saturday.

Meanwhile, Cristiano Ronaldo and Marcelo missed the Monday's workout after both played a key role in the Sunday's 7-1 victory over Deportivo la Coruna, with the Portugal international scoring two goals.

"Real Madrid completed the first session of the week and began preparing for the second leg of the Copa de Rey quarter-finals against Leganés, which will take place this Wednesday at the Santiago Bernabéu (9:30pm CET)," the La Liga giants confirmed on the club website.

"Sergio Ramos worked with the group during a session in which nine of the starters from the win against Deportivo trained at a lower intensity. Cristiano Ronaldo and Marcelo worked inside the facilities."

The absence of Ronaldo and the Brazil left-back from the workout shouldn't be a major concern for Zidane anyway as the two players are expected to be rested against Leganes, with Los Blancos having a 1-0 advantage from the first leg.

Meanwhile, Dani Ceballos could also miss the Copa del Rey decider after the club revealed that the Spanish starlet picked up an ankle injury during the Monday's workout.

"Following tests carried out on Dani Ceballos by the Sanitas Real Madrid Medical Services, he has been diagnosed with a sprained left ankle, picked up during training. His recovery will continue to be assessed," Real informed through an official statement.