Barcelona boss Hansi Flick shared updates on Robert Lewandowski and Alejandro Balde’s injuries ahead of their LaLiga clash against Real Valladolid. The game is an away clash for the Catalans scheduled for Saturday, May 3.
Robert Lewandowski has injured himself during Barcelona’s 4-3 win over Celta Vigo in LaLiga (April 19). His absence is a big disadvantage for the Blaugrana attack, although they won the Copa del Rey final against Real Madrid in Lewandowski’s absence.
Meanwhile, Alejandro Balde has been out since April 12, when he suffered a hamstring injury during their 1-0 win over Leganes in LaLiga. Balde has been a regular starter as left-back this season, making his absence another major blow.
In the pre-match press conference ahead of their Real Valladolid clash, Barcelona coach Hansi Flick shared injury updates on both players.
“We have to wait and see how they develop day by day. They are on the right track but we have to wait. It’s the same as Casado, who did part of the training today. We can’t take any risks. Robert is developing very well, and we’ll have to wait and see with Balde,” Flick said (via Barca Universal).
Flick added that Robert Lewandowski could be back for the UCL semi-final second leg against Inter Milan on May 6.
“He could be back for the second leg. Robert is doing very well and his development is going much better than we expected. We’ll have to see. He is a great professional and always works hard to be 100 per cent. He might be back on Tuesday,” he said.
Ferran Torres has been Barcelona’s starting striker in Lewandowski’s absence, while Gerard Martin has been playing as the left-back in Balde’s unavailability.
Barcelona coach Hansi Flick confirms Marc-Andre ter Stegen will start as goalkeeper against Real Valladolid
In the aforementioned pre-match press conference, Barcelona coach Hansi Flick confirmed that goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen will start against Real Valladolid on Saturday. The German shot-stopper picked up a major injury in September last year and has been out since then.
“Yes, Marc will play tomorrow. I think it’s good for goalkeepers to have a little bit of minutes to recover. Marc is on a good way and his performance in training is fantastic. I’m not thinking about changing anything until the end of the season, but I might. That’s the way things are. For the moment, Marc will play tomorrow,” Flick said (via Barca Universal).
Due to Ter Stegen’s long-term injury, the Catalans signed Wojciech Szczesny on a one-year deal. The Polish shot-stopper came back from retirement to help the club and became a regular starter since January. He is still expected to start for Barca in the UCL semi-final second leg.
Due to Szczesny’s impressive performance this season, he is reportedly in talks to extend his contract and stay another season.
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Edited by Pratyasha Sarkar
