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Barcelona Confirm Lamine Yamal Decision Amid Double Injury Blow

One player expected to return from injury was not included by Hansi Flick in Barcelona’s squad.
Grey Whitebloom|
Lamine Yamal’s contract renewal is arguably the best piece of business Barcelona did this summer.
Lamine Yamal’s contract renewal is arguably the best piece of business Barcelona did this summer. | Angel Martinez/Getty Images

Barcelona have confirmed that Lamine Yamal is fit and available for the club’s La Liga clash with Real Sociedad on Sunday evening amid some mixed injury news for Hansi Flick’s side.

The freshly crowned Kopa Trophy winner has missed Barcelona’s previous four matches with a groin injury he sustained after playing through pain on international duty with Spain. Flick has done little to hide his fury with Luis de la Fuente—who couldn’t care less—and has adopted a far more cautious approach with the talented teenager.

The wait is now over. A little over six hours before Barcelona host Real Sociedad at the Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys, the club released a short statement triumphantly declaring that Yamal “has been medically cleared” and would be included in Sunday’s squad.

Yamal had teased his return on social media over the weekend although Flick would not be drawn on whether the youngster was fit enough to start three weeks on from his previous competitive appearance.

The return of Barcelona’s Ballon d’Or runner-up has come just in time for an increasingly injury-ravaged squad. As the club warned after the midweek victory over Real Oviedo, star forward Raphinha and first-choice goalkeeper Joan García are both out.

Raphinha is predicted to be sidelined for three weeks with a hamstring problem while García could be kept out of action for twice as long after sustaining a meniscus injury which will require surgery.

Left back Alejandro Balde was expected to return alongside Yamal for Sunday’s game but didn’t make the squad.

That decision—and Yamal’s role as starter or substitute—could be impacted by Barcelona’s enormous Champions League clash with Paris Saint-Germain next week. The Catalans host the reigning European champions on Wednesday in one of the most intriguing ties across the entire slate of league phase fixtures. PSG are enduring their own spate of injuries which will only make Yamal’s return all the less palatable.

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Grey Whitebloom
GREY WHITEBLOOM

Grey Whitebloom is an Associate Editor for SI FC. He has more than half a decade of experience in sports media across all its various guises, from the fast-paced demands of news articles and match reports to in-depth research required for features. Whitebloom graduated with a First Class Honours from University College London and found himself named on the Dean’s List—which, despite his initial fears, was a form of praise rather than a punishment. He specialises in the Premier League and Champions League, while also boasting an extensive track record of La Liga coverage.

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