Getty Ansu Fati's fitness is of concern.
Barcelona coach Ronald Koeman has offered an update on Ansu Fati’s fitness after the 18-year-old was taken off during the 2-1 defeat to Real Madrid in El Clasico and felt some discomfort after the match.
The Dutchman told a pre-match press conference on Tuesday that Ansu has been in some pain but insisted it was nothing to do with the knee injury that saw him miss 10 months of action.
“Ansu had some pain but not related to the injury he had,” he said. “He’s still a doubt for Rayo. He’s in the squad but we will make a decision on Wednesday regarding if he travels with us or not.”
Fati has been named in Koeman’s 22-man squad for Wednesday’s match at Rayo Vallecano along with fellow attackers Sergio Aguero, Luuk de Jong, Memphis Depay, and Yusuf Demir.
🚨 𝙎𝙌𝙐𝘼𝘿 𝙇𝙄𝙎𝙏 ! 🚨 #RayoBarça
The 18-year-old only made his long-awaited return from injury in September, appearing as a substitute and scoring in a 3-0 win over Levante. Fati has gone on to make six appearances in total in 2021-22 as Barca ease him back into first-team action.
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Aguero To Start At Rayo?
Concerns over Fati’s fitness could mean that summer signing Sergio Aguero gets his first start for Barcelona at Rayo. The Argentine also missed the start of the season through injury but has now made three substitute appearances.
Aguero was on target after coming off the bench last time out against Real Madrid to score his first goal for his new club, but Koeman wasn’t giving much away when it came to the striker’s chances of being named in the starting XI.
“He has been training for two weeks,” he explained. “He’s not ready for 90 minutes yet, but he’s ready to start a game or play the second half. He’s ready for more game time, that’s true.”
Koeman will be without some key players for the trip to Rayo. Ronald Araujo, Pedri, Frenkie de Jong, Ousmane Dembele, and Martin Braithwaite remain on the injured list and are unavailable to play.
Barcelona Looking For First Away Win
Barca head to Rayo looking for a first away win in La Liga this season but face a team that has won all four home games since being promoted back to Spain’s top flight in the summer.
Koeman will need his players to bounce back from the defeat to Real Madrid and knows the team will face a tough test at the Estadio de Vallecas.
“It’s a team that came up at the last moment but is having a great season,” he added. “We have the memory of the Copa game last season, a difficult game, so we expect a similar match this time. If we follow the line of the last three home games, where we have done a lot well, we have a chance to win the game.”
Wednesday’s match will see Barca come up against Radamel Falcao once again. The Colombian striker, who enjoyed a prolific spell with Atletico between 2011 and 2013, is back in La Liga at the age of 35 and has already netted three times in 2021-22.
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Barcelona Provide Ansu Fati Update After Clasico Injury Scare