Dani Olmo is unavailable to take on AS Monaco in the UEFA Champions League, but Ansu Fati might make his return for Barcelona on Thursday.
Barcelona will aim to kick-start the 2024/25 UEFA Champions League campaign with a bang when they lock horns with AS Monaco at Stade Louis II on Thursday night. And Hansi Flick has greeted a mixed bag of updates on the team news front ahead of his side’s latest fixture.
Dani Olmo is unavailable after picking up a hamstring injury this past weekend against Girona. The Spanish international has joined Andreas Christensen, Fermin Lopez, Gavi, Frenkie de Jong, and Marc Bernal on the sidelines. However, Ansu Fati is in the travelling squad after proving his fitness in training.
Flick discussed Fati’s progress during his pre-match press conference, saying, “We go step by step with the players after injury, it’s very important.”
The Barcelona manager expanded on Fati’s potential involvement by saying, “The thing is, I don’t know. He is ready to play, and when he is ready to play at all, he can play 45 minutes. I know his favourite position, but I’m going to leave it a little bit in suspense. When he’s on the pitch he really enjoys the little games, scoring goals.”
On the general injury situation in the squad, Flick said, “In the last few weeks we have been gradually working with the players, they have been improving from their injuries. Ansu has been able to train well and we are very happy to be able to count on him because he gives us other possibilities.”
While Fati is fit and available, Flick will unlikely throw him into the deep end on Thursday. So, Raphinha and Lamine Yamal will continue as the two wide attackers, with Fati and Ferran Torres being options on the bench. Robert Lewandowski will lead the line for Barcelona against AS Monaco.
As for the midfield unit, Eric Garcia should replace the injured Dani Olmo. Garcia will reprise the holding midfield role, with Pedri and Marc Casado having more freedom in the middle of the park. The backline should remain unchanged, with Jules Kounde, Pau Cubarsi, Inigo Martinez, and Alejandro Balde retaining their spots. Finally, there is no looking past Marc-Andre ter Stegen between the sticks.
Predicted Barcelona XI: ter Stegen; Kounde, Pau Cubarsi, Inigo Martinez, Balde; Eric Garcia, Pedri, Casado; Lamine Yamal, Lewandowski, Raphinha
