Barcelona Coach Luis Enrique has ruled out the prospect of replacing Thomas Vermaelen in January.
The Belgian, a summer signing from Arsenal, learned this week that he would require surgery on a long-standing thigh injury, keeping him sidelined for up to six months.
The Catalan trainer, however, backed the defender to make a full recovery in time for the end of the season, despite his admission that other reinforcements could be on the agenda.
"In professional football, injuries are unfortunately somewhat common because it's a contact sport and very physical," Luis Enrique said at a Press conference ahead of Barca’s trip to Valencia.
"This has been the case with Thomas since he arrived. We understand that an operation is the best solution to heal and help him.
"We have no doubt that he will give us a lot. The team are doing fine, and there'll be no attempt to reinforce that position [of centre-back].
"Not in principle [will we sign anyone in January], I don't think so.
"We can't rule anything out because I'd be delighted to bring in a pearl, but that's not our aim in principle.
"When it comes to central defence, we hope that [Vermaelen] can help us during the season finale because he's a top-quality player.
"We've improved a lot defensively, despite not being a tall team."
