Barcelona will aim to retain a stronghold on the summit of La Liga when they lock horns with Atletico Madrid at Estadio Metropolitano on Saturday night. Hansi Flick has a new injury concern that is hampering his preparations ahead of his side’s latest fixture.
Raphinha is the latest absentee after sustaining a hamstring injury during the international break. The Brazilian international will be unavailable for around five weeks, and he has joined Andreas Christensen (knee) and Frenkie de Jong (hamstring) in the treatment room.
Otherwise, Flick has a full-strength squad for the crucial stretch of the season, where they will face Atletico Madrid thrice in quick succession. Meanwhile, during his pre-match press conference, Flick discussed Raphinha’s absence and provided a fitness update on de Jong.
The Barcelona manager said, “There are no guilty parties. It’s an injury, and that’s part of football; we have to accept it. It hasn’t come at the best time, which saddens us, and now we’ll have to see how we manage it. The players are away with their national teams, and the rest of the team also has days off. It’s not the first injury we’ve had this season.”
“I spoke with him and saw he was feeling down, so I decided to give him a few days off. He’s in good hands. It was my decision for him to stay in Brazil with his family. In this case, we opted to do things differently.”
Flick also discussed the return of several players, including Alejandro Balde, Jules Kounde, and Eric Garcia while providing a fitness update on de Jong. The Barcelona boss said, “The good news is that Balde and Kounde are back, as is Eric. In Frenkie’s case, we’ll have to wait a little longer; perhaps he can start training next week. We’ll take it one step at a time.”
Joan Garcia is an automatic pick between the sticks, with Barcelona lining up in a 4-2-3-1 formation in front of him against Atletico Madrid on Saturday. The backline will feature Ronald Araujo, Pau Cubarsi, Eric Garcia, and Joao Cancelo, with Jules Kounde and Alejandro Balde being backup options on the bench.
As for the midfield unit, Marc Bernal will line up alongside Pedri in the double pivot, with Fermin Lopez reprising the no. 10 role. Finally, Robert Lewandowski will lead the line for the away side against Atletico Madrid, with Lamine Yamal and Marcus Rashford being the two wide attackers.
Predicted Barcelona XI: Joan Garcia; Araujo, Cubarsi, Eric Garcia, Cancelo; Bernal, Pedri; Yamal, Fermin Lopez, Rashford; Lewandowski
