Barcelona’s teenage sensation Lamine Yamal has emerged as a major doubt for the club’s next few matches. Reportedly, he could not even miss their Champions League opener against Newcastle United. The youngster suffered a groin injury while on international duty with Spain.
Yamal played through pain during Spain’s recent World Cup qualifiers. Even so, he registered three assists across La Roha’s wins against Bulgaria and Turkey. Despite reporting discomfort, he featured for 79 and 73 minutes in those fixtures. He did not train in between the games.
Barcelona boss Hansi Flick did not hold back in criticizing Spain’s approach. The coach said, “He went to the national team with pain and they gave him painkillers so he could play. He was on the pitch for more than 70 minutes in each match, even with a three-goal lead. That’s not looking after the players.”
The coach also highlighted communication issues with Spain manager Luis de la Fuente. He admitted that language barriers have limited their dialogue. Flick said, “I never spoke; I have had one conversation via text but I never spoke with him. My Spanish is not good, his English is not good, so maybe this is a problem.”
He stressed that the coordination between club and country ‘could be better’. Barcelona’s press officer Gabriel Martinez later confirmed that Yamal is dealing with ‘discomfort in his pubic bone’. Now he is not only a doubt in their first match but is also doubtful for their Newcastle match.
The club has issued an official statement regarding the injury. But they did not release any recovery timeline. It read, “Lamine Yamal is having trouble in the pubic area that prevented him from training today and means he will play no part in Sunday’s game with Valencia and will not be training with his team-mates until the problem is resolved.”
Also Read: Rayan Ait-Nouri Injury Update: How Long Will Manchester City Be Without Their Defender?
Yamal is sure to miss these two games –
Depending on his recovery timeline, he could also miss their next La Liga game against Getafe on September 21.
The timing is particularly unfortunate for Flick. He has been handed a few more injuries as well. He will be without Gavi and Alejandro Balde along with Frenkie de Jong who sustained an injury with the Netherlands. In the midst of it, the absence of Yamal, one of Barcelona’s brightest attacking outlets, could prove the worst for them.
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