Barcelona have enjoyed a fairly successful start to the season despite sitting behind Real Madrid in the La Liga table after eight games, but they’ll do well to maintain their form given the injuries they have totted up.
Barca are just a point behind Madrid and are the only unbeaten team in La Liga right now, also winning the first two group games of their Champions League campaign. On the pitch, things look pretty good.
However, injuries continue to rock Xavi’s squad. A knock to Robert Lewandowski in the Champions League which the manager would have desperately wanted to avoid now leaves Barca incredibly light in the final third.
It might not be a long absence for Lewandowski, but there are other important players set for quite a long spell on the sidelines at Barcelona.
Robert Lewandowski
Lewandowski is obviously the main striker at Barcelona, with no other forward coming close to matching his talents, and the club knew before the season began they would be in trouble if the Poland star got injured.
He went off against Porto on 4 October and it was later confirmed he has sprained his ankle. This sort of injury does not have a clear timeframe for recovery but estimates suggest he will miss about a month of action.
That would mean missing some pretty important matches, such as a Champions League match against Shakhtar Donestsk and – more crucially – the Clasico against Real Madrid in La Liga on 28 October. That has to be the game Lewandowski has his eye on as the ambitious return date.
Raphinha
Brazilian winger Raphinha doesn’t seem to grab headlines at Barcelona but he has been a very important player for Xavi since he made the move from Leeds United. He’s a useful option on both wings and can hurt any opponent.
He suffered a hamstring injury against Sevilla towards the end of September and there is hope for him to return after the international break, which would point to Barcelona vs Athletic Club on 22 October.
More importantly, the Clasico is on 28 October.
Frenkie de Jong
Dutch midfielder Frenkie de Jong is an incredibly important player for Barcelona and that was shown by Xavi using him as a centre-back when the team was light in defence. He wasn’t out of place at the back, either.
While Barcelona have plenty of great midfielders, they are definitely feeling his absence. De Jong is another star expected to miss the Clasico, with his return date instead being the away trip to Shakhtar Donetsk in the Champions League on 7 November.
Pedri
Pedri is such an important player for Barcelona, who have been missing his energy and versatility. He suffered a thigh injury back in August when the season was extremely young and he has been out ever since.
The good news is the 20-year-old could return after the international break, meaning the game against Athletic Club is possible, which comes before El Clasico. He shared an Instagram video of him back in training with the caption ‘coming soon’, so the wait is almost over.
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