Barcelona are already without several key players ahead of Thursday’s first leg of their Copa del Rey semi-final against Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu.
Ousmane Dembele and Pedri were already out of the fixture, while Robert Lewandowski was ruled out earlier this week after suffering an injury against Almeria on Sunday. Ansu Fati had been a doubt, but he is expected to be fit to play some part.
Despite that positive news, Xavi Hernandez has been hit with another injury blow ahead of El Clasico. Relevo report that Andreas Christensen, who would almost certainly have started on Thursday, is a major doubt having suffered an ankle problem in training.
The Danish international trained on Wednesday for just 15 minutes due to the issue, meaning that his starting place is in doubt. If he is unfit to play, Marcos Alonso is expected to take his place in the centre of defence.
Barcelona have not have the best preparation for the third Clasico of the season, following two successive defeats to Manchester United and Almeria, and this news is another blow as they chase a domestic treble this season.
