Adama Traore and Gavi will return, but Pedri could be rested when Barcelona and Eintracht Frankfurt face off in the UEFA Europa League on Thursday.
Barcelona will look to close in on a place in the UEFA Europa League semi-finals when they lock horns with Eintracht Frankfurt at the Deutsche Bank Park on Thursday night. And Xavi Hernandez has new roster issues to deal with ahead of his side’s latest fixture.
Memphis Depay is unavailable after sustaining a hamstring injury that will keep him out for the foreseeable future. In addition to the Dutch forward, Sergino Dest (hamstring) and Samuel Umtiti (toe) are also in the treatment room. At the same time, Luuk de Jong is self-isolating after testing positive for COVID-19, while Dani Alves is ineligible to play in the Europa League.
Meanwhile, Ansu Fati is excluded from the travelling squad as he continues on his road to recovery. So, Xavi has limited options at his disposal in the offensive unit, with Ousmane Dembele, Ferran Torres and Adama Traore vying for the two wide-attacking spots. pre-match press conference, as quoted by Barca Blaugranes, Xavi commented on Adama Traore’s frustrating situation.
The Barcelona boss insisted Traore will get ample opportunities in a busy April, saying, “He will be important, we have games tomorrow, Sunday, Monday, we need to rotate. It depends on everyone’s physical feeling, their form, knocks, feelings. Adama will be very important.”
Traore should get the nod on the right-wing on Thursday, with Ferran Torres long overdue to get rested. Ousmane Dembele will thus move to the left flank, with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang poised to spearhead the Barcelona attack against Eintracht Frankfurt.
Like Torres, Pedri has played relentlessly since returning from injury. The Spanish international should benefit from getting a breather, meaning Gavi should start alongside Frenkie de Jong and Sergio Busquets in the middle of the park for Barcelona.
As for the defensive unit, the absence of a natural right-back due to Dest and Alves’s unavailability leaves Xavi with a minor issue. And the Barcelona boss touched upon the topic during his presser, saying, “We have Ronald, Oscar. Dest is injured, Dani is not registered, that’s a shame. We have various options.”
“It could even be Eric, but Ronald as we’ve seen time and again is at a very high level with the ball, we all know he can win the ball, he can create danger, he’s very fast, explosive, with the ball he can create problems. He’s getting better and better and plays really well wherever I put him.”
Araujo should get the nod in the right-back slot, allowing Eric Garcia to pair up with Gerard Pique at the heart of the Barcelona defence. Jordi Alba is an automatic pick in the left-back berth, while Marc-Andre ter Stegen picks himself between the sticks.
Predicted Barcelona XI: ter Stegen; Araujo, Pique, Garcia, Alba; Gavi, Busquets, de Jong; Traore, Aubameyang, Dembele
