Barcelona managed to pull out anothe comeback against Real Oviedo on Thursday night, as they overturned a one-goal deficit to run out 3-1 winners at the Nuevo Carlos Tartiere, and made it four out of four victories without Lamine Yamal. However there is positive news on the 18-year-old’s fitness.
The teenage star has been absent since he played in Spain’s 6-0 win over Turkiye early this month, with differing reports saying he has a groin or a back issue. Barcelona manager Hansi Flick has criticised La Roja for giving him pain-killing injections and playing in spite of his injury. Since, he has been absent for wins over Valencia, Newcastle United, Getafe and now Oviedo.
Team doctor Ricard Pruna advised Gavi to undergo surgery after discovering a small meniscus fissure in late August. While physio Raúl Martínez advocated for conservative treatment, the midfielder opted for that approach, but the pain persisted. Ultimately, surgery became…
— barcacentre (@barcacentre) September 26, 2025
‘Hey! I’m back’ – Lamine Yamal
President Joan Laporta let slip on Monday that Lamine Yamal could be back in action this Sunday against Real Sociedad, with Barcelona looking to have him raring to go against Paris Saint-Germain this Wednesday. Lamine Yamal posted on his Instagram story on Friday morning a video of himself scoring against RCD Mallorca with the caption ‘Hey! I’m back’.
Diario AS confirm that he was back in full training with the rest of his teammates on Friday, and the feeling is that he could see some game time against La Real on Sunday night.
Competition for places at Barcelona
It means that game time will become even harder to come by for Barcelona’s forwards. Marcus Rashford started three of those four games without Lamine Yamal, scoring twice and giving two assists. Raphinha, Rashford, Robert Lewandowski and Ferran Torres are now battling it out for just two spots in the forward line, although Raphinha and Torres have operated behind Lewandowski at times in the past. That could come at the expense of Dani Olmo, who has struggled to hit the ground running so far this season.
