Barcelona have been scraping through their matches of late as they await the return of their attacking stars, but the presence of one of them is in doubt for their two crucial fixtures ahead of the international break at the end of March.
According to MD, Ousmane Dembele is out of their trip to Bilbao to face Athletic Club this Sunday. He is also a doubt for El Clasico, which had been earmarked as the date of his return. Dembele was due to return to work with the group this week, but after the latest tests, that has been ruled out.
Dembele picked up a muscle strain in early February against Girona, since which Barcelona have lacked spark and the ability to unbalance defences. He was scheduled to be out for four to five weeks, and will reach the latter of those dates on Monday of next week.
While Barcelona have managed relatively well in his absence, missing him for El Clasico against Real Madrid on the 19th of March would be a major blow. As was seen at the Santiago Bernabeu in the first leg of the Copa del Rey semi-final, Barcelona struggled to cause their rivals issues in attack without him and Robert Lewandowski.