Barcelona’s remarkable comeback victory over Celta Vigo on Saturday was a joyous occasion for the Catalans, who reclaimed their place at the top of the La Liga table with the three points. However, it was far from a perfect evening, with the big blemish being the injury suffered by Frenkie de Jong.
De Jong limped off after 36 minutes at the Olympic Stadium, with Barcelona confirming an ankle injury for the Dutch international. He is expected to miss six weeks, which would rule him out of several important matches – none more so than next month’s first Clasico of the season.
De Jong’s absence means that Xavi Hernandez will be without two of his first-choice midfielders, with Pedri also expected to be missing for the next few weeks. Others will have to step up to the plate, with Sport detailing who Xavi could utilise in the meantime.
Oriol Romeu is likely to be a regular starter with de Jong out, with the 31-year-old seen as the only natural defensive midfielder at this stage. Ilkay Gundogan can also play there, so he can step back too. Gavi is also likely to play regularly in midfield, which is a role that he has thrived in of late.
Those three are likely to be Barcelona’s first-choice starters over the next few weeks, but with matches coming thick and fast, Xavi will need to use his squad. Sergi Roberto and Fermin Lopez are both options, while youngsters Marc Casado and Unai Hernandez may also be utilised.
There’s no doubt that Barcelona are worse off without de Jong in the team, but there are still plenty of options at Xavi’s disposal, most of which he will have to use over the coming weeks.
