Raphinha, out for 5 weeks: Barça loses key player for Champions League and LaLiga

Raphinha, significant absence for Barcelona

Barcelona will be without Raphinha for the crucial Champions League match against Atletico Madrid. The forward suffered a hamstring injury that will keep him out of action for five weeks. Raphinha’s injury, 29 years old, occurred in the first half of the friendly match that Brazil played against France at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, where Brazil was defeated 2-1. After being substituted during the break, tests carried out by Brazil’s medical team confirmed the injury to the right hamstring. Raphinha will now return to Barcelona for treatment, but will not play again until May, thus missing some key matches for his club.

Barcelona will face Atletico Madrid three times in the coming weeks, starting with a match at the Metropolitano next Saturday. The team will seek to maintain their four-point lead over Real Madrid at the top of LaLiga. Subsequently, they will face Atlético again in the Champions League quarter-finals, with the first leg scheduled for Spotify Camp Nou on April 8 and the return leg in Madrid on April 14. If Barcelona overcomes this tie, they could host Arsenal or Sporting Lisbon in the first leg of the semi-finals at the end of April, with the second leg away from home at the beginning of May, matches that Raphinha would also miss.

This is the third time this season that Raphinha, who has scored 19 goals in 31 appearances, has injured his right hamstring.

The player missed 13 games between September and November, and another three games between January and February. Raphinha’s injury could benefit Marcus Rashford, who is the most likely candidate to take his place on the left wing of the attack, although coach Hansi Flick has other options. Dani Olmo and Fermín López have been used on the wing in the past, as has Ferran Torres, while João Cancelo and Roony Bardghji are also candidates to play if necessary.