La Liga leaders Barcelona have said Lamin Yamal will be out for three to four weeks with a torn ankle ligament.
Spanish winger Yamal missed three club games and two internationals with an ankle injury in November, but bounced back to score four goals in five games and faced a fresh setback in Barca's 1-0 home defeat to Leganes on Sunday.
The 17-year-old was replaced by Gavi in the 75th minute at the Estadio Olimpico Louis Kompany, whose team dropped a point for the fifth time in six league games.
Laminated Yamal. Golden boy. pic.twitter.com/7oQ2kSan0h
- FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) December 15, 2024
Yamal Injury: When Will It Come Back?
Yamal's absence is a big problem as Barcelona prepare to host second-placed Atletico Madrid on Saturday (8pm GMT).
Euro 2024 winners Barcelona are unlikely to miss that much when they visit fourth-placed Barbastro on January 4 (6pm) in the Copa del Rey round, and the earliest possible return is a game in Jeddah against Athletic Bilbao in Spain. Super Cup semi-finals January 8 (7pm).
Barcelona will have just over 10 days off before visiting Getafe, currently fifth in La Liga, in mid-January.
Their seventh Champions League match of the campaign is against Portuguese side Benfica in the league on January 21 (7pm).
Medical news
In the game against CD Leganes on Sunday, first team player Lamin Yamal was hit on the right ankle. A scan on Monday revealed that the player has a grade 1 injury to the ligaments in his ankle. The player for 3... pic.twitter.com/IAFD0pWFSS
- FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) December 16, 2024
Yamal statistics
With six club goals and 11 assists this season, Yamal sits among Barca's top scorers alongside Robert Lewandowski and Rafinha and is the third-highest player in Europe's top five leagues.
Arsenal's Bukayo Saka and Liverpool's top scorer Mohamed Salah are the top scorers in these categories.
Barcelona have completed 90 minutes in all three games, including Ferran Torres' 85th-minute assist in a 3-2 win over Borussia Dortmund on 11 December.
Barcelona have lost three of their last four games and it hasn't started yet.
🔄 Substitutes
→ Gavi, Qubarsi
←🔴 It hurts, Eric#Barsaleganes pic.twitter.com/QiaXXlFEB0- FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) December 15, 2024
Barcelona: It hurts 'very important'
"He is very important," manager Hansi Flick said after the match. "He can do a lot for the team. We know his quality and we want it.
Barcelona's losing season has handed the priority to Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid in the Spanish title race.
Atleti sit level on points with them, one point behind the champions.
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