The most recent Barcelona star to sustain a serious injury is Robert Lewandowski.
Prior to El Clasico, other talents like Frenkie de Jong and Pedri must wait anxiously to practice.
Raphinha was recently injured with a hamstring issue as well.
Despite behind Real Madrid in the La Liga standings after eight matches, Barcelona has had a rather successful start to the season. However, given the number of injuries they have had, they will need to continue their current pace.
Barcelona is now the only unbeaten team in La Liga and is only one point behind Real Madrid. They have also won both of their opening two group games in the Champions League. Things appear to be going well on the field.
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.
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.
Injury: Hamstring; anticipated comeback date: late October Raphinha, a Brazilian winger, may not seem to attract much attention when playing for Barcelona, but ever since Xavi moved there from Leeds United, he has been a crucial member of the team. He can injure any opponent and is a useful option on both wings. He suffered a hamstring injury against Sevilla at the end of September, but there is optimism that he will be able to play against Barcelona vs. Athletic Club on October 22 following the international break. The Clasico is on October 28th, which is more significant.
- Issue: Ankle injury; Potential return: Early November
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.
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