Barcelona have had a difficult few weeks, but they will hope to go into the next international break on a high when they take on Celta Vigo at Balaidos. Hansi Flick is starting to get players back from injury, and in the last few hours, he has been handed more good news in this regard.
Joan Garcia and Andreas Christensen were both involved in group training on Friday, although it is only the latter that is projected to be included in the matchday squad to travel to Vigo. Eric Garcia will also be able to play despite suffering a broken nose in the draw at Club Brugge earlier in the week, but now it seems that Jules Kounde may not be available in Galicia.
Kounde doubtful to face Celta after leaving training early
Kounde sat out Friday’s session, as he sought to recover from a blow sustained in Brugge. This had led to doubts about whether he could miss out against Celta, and as per Sport, he had to leave Saturday’s training session early, having initially been involved with the group.
Kounde has been in poor form of late, but given that Eric may not be risked from the start against Celta due to his facial injury, it is important for him to be okay to be in the line-up, given that he is the only other senior right-back option available to Flick. If he is not able to play, an alternative could be La Masia starlet Xavi Espart, although he has yet to play for the first team, so there are doubts about whether he would be thrown into the deep end.
Barcelona will hope that Kounde is able to play against Celta, as they seek to end this stretch of matches on a high. The right-back position will be very important on Sunday, as whoever starts is likely to be up against Bryan Zaragoza, who has been a thorn in the Catalans’ side in recent years.
