This past international break was more than “catastrophic” for the El Clasico rivals. With Gavi going down for FC Barcelona and Eduardo Camavinga & Vinicius Jr. for Real Madrid, it was the most disastrous internationals ever for these two clubs.
Gavi grabbed all the headlines because his injury is the most cataclysmic. He’s done for the rest of the club season, and he’ll miss out on Euro 2024 as well.
FC Barcelona at Rayo Vallecano FYIs
Kickoff: Sat. Nov 25, 14:00 CET, Estadio de Vallecas, Madrid, Spain
FC Barcelona Preview Material: Full Injury List Team News Starting XI Prediction
Transatlantic Passage: How the Premier League Redefined Soccer in America: LINK
La Liga Standing, Form: Rayo Vallecano 10th, 18 pts, LDDWL FC Barcelona 3rd, 30 pts, WWLWD
Google Result Probability: Rayo Vallecano 19% Draw 23% FC Barcelona 58%
Barca Team News
When Gavi tore up his anterior cruciate ligament, it did a lot more than just make news. It prompted a discussion about how we treat footballers, and what could be done to handle them more like human beings, and less like commodities.
We won’t get into that here, as that article has already been written, but it’s out there if you want to Google it.
Elsewhere Barcelona No. 1 Marc-Andre Ter Stegen is a strong doubt here as he withdrew from the German National Team camp due to a back injury.
However, the news is much better for Dutch midfielder Frenkie de Jong. It looks like he could feature for the first time since September here. Meanwhile Pedri is back while Sergi Roberto remains out for the longer term.
Paul M. Banks is the owner/manager 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’s written for numerous publications, including the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. He regularly appears on NTD News and WGN News Now, while writing for the International Baseball Writers Association of America. You can follow the website on Twitter.