Getty Gavi receives treatment on the pitch at the Camp Nou.
Barcelona lost 17-year-old midfielder Gavi to a head injury in the first half of their La Liga clash with Real Betis at the Camp Nou on Saturday, December 4.
Gavi was once again named in the starting XI but only lasted 35 minutes after sustaining an injury. The midfielder initially hurt his head after being hit with the ball at close range when Betis defender Hector Bellerin tried to clear.
The youngster also banged his head on Bellerin’s leg as he fell. Gavi tried to continue without any treatment but went down again minutes later and was taken off and replaced by Riqui Puig.
Coach Xavi confirmed after the match Gavi had been taken to hospital as a precaution, as reported by ESPN’s Samuel Marsden. The news is a further blow to Barca as Gavi has established himself as a regular for club and country this season, making 18 appearances in all competitions already in 2021-22 for the Catalan giants.
Barca also have a crunch game up next in the Champions League. Xavi’s men face Bayern Munich in their final group fixture and need a win to guarantee qualification to the last 16.
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Fans Show Concern For Gavi
Gavi’s injury drew plenty of concern from worried supporters, particularly as the youngster did not receive any medical attention after the initial contact with Bellerin despite clearly hurting his head.
Fans were concerned the teenager had suffered a concussion and felt he should have been checked over much earlier.
Gavi should’ve received medical attention as soon as he got hit on the head, hope he’s ok. Doesn’t look good.
Looks like Gavi has a concussion…as someone with a history of head traumas, it hurts so much to watch. Hope he recovers fast with no issues afterwards. 😥
Oh, baby Gavi. Please be ok. Sub him off.
Barca went on to lose the game 1-0 and suffer a first defeat since Xavi replaced Ronald Koeman as manager. Juanmi scored the only goal of the game after a quick counter-attack on 79 minutes.
Frenkie de Jong An Injury Concern?
Gavi is not the only new injury concern for Xavi. Dutch midfielder Frenkie de Jong has also picked up a muscular problem which is why he did not start the game against Real Betis and was named only on the bench.
Xavi was unwilling to risk the Netherlands international for 90 minutes in the fixture because he wants De Jong to be fit for the vital clash at Bayern on Wednesday, December 8, as reported by journalist Francesc Aguilar.
Barca can ill-afford to lose any more key players for the match. Xavi is already without Sergio Aguero, Pedri, Martin Braithwaite, and Sergi Roberto for the trip to the Allianz Arena.
Teenage striker Ansu Fati is also expected to miss out due to a hamstring injury. There had been hope that Fati could return in time, but Xavi offered a downbeat update in his pre-match press conference before the visit of Real Betis.
“Ansu is doing a tremendous effort to be back with the team and it makes me emotional to see how hard he works,” he explained. “We know the importance of that game but I hope and I want him to be comfortable. We know that these next matches are important for us. Until he’s 100% he won’t be back with the team. I’m not going to force any players. We did that in the past and we lost them. When he’s 100% he’ll be back with the team.”
Fati has eight goals in four appearances for Barcelona so far this season, including the winner against Dynamo Kiev earlier in the group, but it looks likely the Catalans will have to cope without him again at Bayern.
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