The situation right now in ‘Can Barça’ is one of maximum expectation, waiting for the results of the PCR test that the players have done this morning and that will be known in the early afternoon. For now, the four positives that have occurred in the squad have been because the players themselves took the initiative by not feeling well during these Christmas dates or when considering a trip that forced them to pass the test. Both Clement Lenglet, Jordi Alba, Balde and Dani Alves are among these cases.
But if the situation of possible positives worries and occupies the club, let alone the injured. To this day, Xavi has a list of seven players in the infirmary, although it is true that he could recover some for the game against Mallorca. In principle, both Yusuf Demir and Sergiño Dest could be available, although the first has the ‘handicap’ that if he plays one more game, Barcelona would be forced to execute the purchase option, set at 10 million euros, which does not contemplated in any case. TOOtherwise, Pedri could also enter, although if he did it would not be to be in the eleven, but to play a few minutes in the second half, after coming out of a muscle injury in the quadriceps that has left him practically unprecedented this season.
More complicated seems the recovery of Ansu Fati for Sunday, and already impossible are Martin Braithwaite, Sergi Roberto and Memphis Depay.
To this endless list of casualties must be added two more. Sergio Busquets and Gavi are sanctioned. Apart from the fact that the two winter reinforcements, Dani Alves and Ferran Torres, are not yet available, since due to bureaucratic issues they cannot be discharged from the federation until January 3 and the match a day before. Although, even if the game was played in Mallorca on the 3rd they could not play either: the Brazilian is positive for Covid and the Spanish is out due to injury and will need about fifteen more days to finish recovering.
In total, fourteen casualties to date, to which surely some more can be added, as the results of the PCR become known.
According to LaLiga protocol, for a match to be suspended there must be a lower number of five players from the first team and a call-up with 13 players, adding the first team and subsidiary. As of today, Xavi has 14 players available from the first team, as long as he gets Demir and Dest back.