FC Barcelona starting goalkeeper Joan Garcia was seen limping after yesterday’s 5-3 win at Real Betis. Garcia suffered an injury blow, of some sort, to his ankle in the La Liga fixture. However, according to reports, the club believes that he’ll be fine for the Tuesday night Champions League match at home against Eintracht Frankfurt.
The other Garcia on the team (no relation) suffered a knock in the same match, as did another Barca defender Alejandro Balde, who was forced off at halftime.
UCL Matchday 6 FYIs
FC Barcelona vs Eintracht Frankfurt
Kickoff: 8pm local, Tuesday Dec. 9, Camp Nou, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain
UCL Standings: FC Barcelona 18th 7pts Eintracht Frankfurt 28th 4 pts
Barcelona Team News
However, before you go and label Balde a doubt for this match, it is very much worth noting that he was present at Barcelona’s training session earlier today, as was Eric Garcia. So most likely, both will be available for the Camp Nou clash against the Bundesliga side on Tuesday night. Whether or not manager Hansi Flick selects them remains to be seen.
And beyond that, the team news with the Blaugranes remains the same as it was prior to the weekend.
No matter what team Flick selects here, they badly need a win. Barca is in the bottom half of the UCL standings and time is running out.
They need to get three points and head north up the table in a hurry.
Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He currently contributes to USA Today’s NFL Wires Network, RG.org and Ratings.org. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes and the Washington Post.