Barcelona boss Ernesto Valverde has confirmed Ivan Rakitic is not injured and has been left out of the matchday squad on a ‘technical issue’.
The Croatian international started his first game of the season in Saturday’s two-goal defeat at Granada and has once again been left out of the matchday squad entirely for the upcoming clash against Villarreal.
The former Sevilla captain has been a key figure for the club under Valverde – starting 60 La Liga games across the previous two campaigns.
“Ivan is not selected because of a technical issue, he is not injured,” the Coach told his Monday press conference, as cited by El Mundo Deportivo.
“Carles Alena? He has trained well, just like Ivan and the others, nothing in particular has happened. We simply have many players in these positions and sometimes players are chosen and other times, they are not.
“The return of Ousmane Dembele? He is a forward who gives us an extra option and you never know what to expect from him – he has so much talent and he will showcase that for us.”
