Robert Lewandowski to miss El Clasico as Barcelona confirm injury

Barcelona have had rotten luck with injury in recent weeks, and this has now continued with Robert Lewandowski, who has returned from international duty with a muscle issue.

Lewandowski missed the start of the 2025-26 campaign after suffering a thigh strain during pre-season, and two months on, he has been struck down again. Less than 36 hours after scoring for Poland in their World Cup qualifier against Lithuania, the 37-year-old has been confirmed to have injured his hamstring.

In an official medical report, Barcelona noted that Lewandowski “has suffered a muscle tear in the biceps femoris of his left thigh”, with MD reporting that this will keep him out of action for at least 4-6 weeks.

What matches will Lewandowski miss?

It means that Lewandowski is ruled out of El Clasico, a fixture in which he scored three goals last season. On top of this, he guaranteed to miss matches against Girona, Olympiacos, Elche, Club Brugge and Celta Vigo, while he could also be absent for the visit of Athletic Club after the November international break.

According to the report, both Barcelona and Lewandowski are optimistic that he will be back within four weeks, which would be the best case scenario. It would mean that he could use next month’s international break to work his way back to full fitness, ahead of being available against Athletic.

What options does Hansi Flick have at striker?

Lewandowski has not been Barcelona’s main striker this season, but his absence will still be a big blow. It means that Ferran Torres will likely be undisputed in the position over the coming weeks, although Marcus Rashford could also be utilised there – especially when Raphinha returns to take the left wing spot.

It remains to be seen how Barcelona get on without Lewandowski, but it’s clear that the upcoming run of fixtures will be more difficult without the Polish striker.