Barcelona announced in an official statement the nature of the injuries sustained by Alejandro Balde and Jules Koundé in Tuesday’s match against Atlético Madrid.
Koundé started in the match, which ended in a 3-0 victory for Barcelona, but resulted in their elimination from the Copa del Rey with a 4-3 aggregate score against Atlético Madrid. Balde was a substitute in the second half.
According to Barça’s statement, Koundé is suffering from a hamstring injury in his left leg, without specifying the duration of his absence.
However, the newspaper “Sport” reported that Koundé will need at least four weeks to fully recover and return to playing for the Blaugrana.
As for Balde, he has a hamstring injury in his left leg. Barcelona has given him a one-month recovery period, while Catalan newspapers indicate that his absence could reach six weeks.
Thus, the absence of both full-backs is confirmed for Barcelona’s Champions League Round of 16 matches against Newcastle, as well as their La Liga fixtures against Athletic Bilbao, Sevilla, and Rayo Vallecano.
In this situation, Hansi Flick will likely have to rely on Gerard Martin at left-back and either João Cancelo or Eric García at right-back.
