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Barcelona‘s injury crisis shows no sign of easing with center-back Eric Garcia the latest player to be ruled out after suffering a hamstring injury in the 1-1 La Liga draw at Granada.
The 21-year-old was forced off in the second half and replaced by Clement Lenglet. Barcelona have now confirmed that Garcia will miss the next five weeks of action with a hamstring injury.
The news is a real blow for Barcelona, particularly as fellow center-back Ronald Araujo has also been sidelined. The Uruguay international suffered a hand injury against Linares in the Copa del Rey that required surgery.
The duo join a lengthy injury list at the Camp Nou that currently contains Frenkie de Jong, Pedri, Ansu Fati, Sergi Roberto, and Martin Braithwaite. Yet there has been some good news on the injury front with Memphis Depay and Sergino Dest returning to the squad for the draw at Granada after spells out.
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Clasico Up Next For Barcelona
Barcelona’s next fixture is a Clasico clash with bitter rivals Real Madrid in the semi-finals of the Spanish Super Cup. The game takes place in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday, January 12 with the winners going on to face Atletico Madrid or Athletic Club in the final.
Real Madrid will be the favorites for victory as Los Blancos are currently top of the table in Spain. Carlo Ancelotti’s side also ran out 2-1 winners when the teams met in La Liga at the Camp Nou back in October 2021.
Los Blancos warmed up for the match against Barcelona with a comfortable 4-1 victory over Valencia last time out. Two goals each from Karim Benzema and Vinicius Junior secured the three points.
Xavi Says Barcelona Can Compete With Real Madrid
Barcelona are in the midst of another chaotic season but have improved under Xavi and have only lost once since the club legend returned to replace Ronald Koeman and take charge of the team.
Xavi told reporters ahead of his team’s draw at Granada that he thinks his team are able to compete with Real Madrid despite the difficulties and injury problems they have endured so far in 2021-22, as reported by Mundo Deportivo.
“For sure we will compete. In this season’s matches we have only been inferior to Bayern,” he said. “We were better against Sevilla and in the other draws. The only one who did not reach us to compete was Bayern. The players are getting the idea of the game, but we need time and patience. We are on the right track.”
Xavi also confirmed that striker Ansu Fati should be available for the Super Cup after returning from injury. The 19-year-old has been out since November but has scored four times in just eight appearances this season for Barca.
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