Barcelona Sidestep Major Problem After Welcome Gavi Injury Diagnosis

Barcelona shared news of Gavi’s injury status on Monday after the midfielder was unable to complete one half of the 5–0 win against Elche because of a “blow” to his right knee.

Gavi played just 13 times last season because of surgery to repair a meniscus in that knee. He also missed more than 300 days after an ACL tear in late 2023, again in the right knee. It made for unsurprising concern when the 22-year-old couldn’t continue in Sunday’s La Liga opener.

But Barcelona medics carried out tests on the morning after and were able to diagnose a minor problem and no more. It is “only a contusion” meaning a “short time” out of training.

It remains to be seen whether that will mean he is available quickly enough to face Athletic Club this week—originally supposed to be the club’s first game of the season but postponed from earlier this month until Thursday night. That would require a return to training by Wednesday at the latest, with Hansi Flick and his staff unlikely to be taking any risks on a player with a history of knee trouble and at this very early stage of a long campaign.

The Catalans are not then in action again until Aug. 31 against Rayo Vallecano, which ought to be more than long enough for Gavi to recover from this knock.

Barcelona Avoid Major Midfield Problem

Rodri is awaiting his debut. | Jose Breton/Pics Action/NurPhoto/Getty Images

Losing Gavi for any extended period of time (again) would have been far from ideal for Barcelona, given the lack of experienced cover in midfield—even with the arrival of Rodri.

Club captain Frenkie de Jong is sidelined for several months because of an MCL tear in his right knee and Pedri was the only first-team cover available to replace Gavi in Elche.

Talented teenager Marc Bernal had started next to Gavi, with Barcelona B’s Brian Fariñas the only other midfielder that Flick had on the bench. Rodri missed out against Elche but has recovered from post-World Cup back surgery and could debut against Athletic Club this week.

Andreas Christensen and Eric García have both also been known to plug holes in midfield.

Xavi Espart had been tipped for a midfield start against Elche, but the Masia graduate wound up playing at left back amid the uncertainty surrounding Alejandro Balde’s future and João Cancelo only being involved from the bench in the final 10 minutes.

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