Fear and agitation at Can Barça
Probably not the headline you expected shortly after F.C. Barcelona’s solid performance against Girona. With 15 out of 15 possible points in LaLiga, 17 goals scored, and a forceful showing week in, week out, Barça’s ship is sailing smoothly… except for one issue: the damned injuries.
Injuries are to Barça what relegation is to Sevilla: a significant threat that’s overshadowed their last few seasons; or rather that splinter embedded in the skin that's incredibly difficult to remove. The physical condition of Barcelona’s players has been under scrutiny for quite a while, which is why a thorough restructuring of fitness coaches, recovery specialists and physiotherapists was implemented this summer to tackle the issue.
They probably still need time to change the squad’s dynamic, but the injuries just keep on coming. While Gavi, Frenkie de Jong and Ronald Araujo are all dragging injuries from a while back, and Pedri recovered shortly after the league kicked off, the infirmary list never seems to diminish. First it was Ansu Fati in late July, who still hasn’t had a chance to make his debut under Hansi Flick, although he should be available shortly. Then Andreas Christensen, followed by Marc Bernal, who was barely starting to show the world his potential in a position on the field where Barça have been dying to find a worthy successor for Sergio Busquets.
But it doesn’t end there, because Fermín López is also on the sidelines, hopefully not for much longer, and the latest addition to the list is Barça’s star signing for the summer: Dani Olmo. What at first seemed like a minor injury against Girona is going to linger on for around a month, missing, at least, six to seven games.
It’s still early on in the season, but so far Barça look unstoppable. Yet are they? While still to face tougher opposition, the injuries could be the other element capable of putting an end to the optimism and halting the team’s progress. Thankfully, ‘La Masía’ has been fruitful and the kids are responding when required, but in such a long and jam-packed season, and with such a short squad (22 first-team players), the injury threat is real. Every campaign there seems to be more games and fewer rest days for footballers who, are well paid, but also humans after all.
Injuries are so hard to evaluate but I always wonder if there’s some kind of correlation we can (with the limited information we have as outside observers) guesstimate at?
Do you think it’s more likely to be a systemic issue or just bad luck?
Luckily it seems like a fair few of the previously injured players are on their way back (Ansu, Frenkie, Fermin etc..)