Raphinha and Ronald Araujo will return to the Barcelona starting lineup against RCD Mallorca at the Iberostar Stadium on Tuesday.
La Liga leaders Barcelona will look to remain perched atop the league table when they lock horns with RCD Mallorca at the Iberostar Stadium on Tuesday night. But Xavi Hernandez has a new injury concern ahead of his side’s latest fixture.
Frenkie de Jong picked up an ankle injury in the game against Celta Vigo this past weekend. So, the Dutchman is not a part of the travelling squad to take on Mallorca this midweek. In addition, Pedri is also unavailable as he continues his recovery.
But Ronald Araujo has travelled to Mallorca and is closing in on his first start since regaining his fitness. Meanwhile, Xavi spoke about the injury problems in the midfield unit during his pre-match press conference, discussing de Jong and Pedri.
He said, “Frenkie is a sensitive and very important loss for us because of the way we play and the way he has been playing since last season, at an exceptional level. There are many players to replace him and we hope we won’t be affected by his absence. We’ll see how he is after the break, but we hope he makes a good recovery and recovers one hundred percent.”
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“Pedri has a very good feeling, we’ll see what day we can get him back. It depends on how he feels. He’s doing very well. We have alternatives and one of them is Sergi Roberto. He’s a formidable wildcard for me as a coach, a luxury wildcard. Just like Fermín, he’s a discovery and he can help us a lot, to be taken into account, he can be important.”
While Xavi discussed Sergi Roberto as an option to replace de Jong, he will likely persist with Gavi. The Spanish international will join veteran midfielder Ilkay Gundogan and Oriol Romeu in the middle of the park.
As for the offensive unit, Raphinha should return to the starting lineup. While Ferran Torres has been playing well and Lamine Yamal is a revelation, Raphinha will get his chance to impress. The Brazilian international will join Robert Lewandowski and Joao Felix in the final third.
Meanwhile, the defensive unit should also see a couple of changes. Ronald Araujo should come in for Andreas Christensen as Jules Kounde’s central defensive partner. Meanwhile, Alejandro Balde will likely replace Marcos Alonso, with Joao Cancelo completing the numbers. Finally, Marc-Andre ter Stegen will take his place between the sticks.
Predicted Barcelona XI: ter Stegen; Cancelo, Kounde, Araujo, Balde; Gundogan, Romeu, Gavi; Raphinha, Lewandowski, Felix
