Raphinha sidelined for five weeks, significant setback for Barcelona
Barcelona will be without Raphinha for the forthcoming Champions League match against Atlético Madrid after the forward was sidelined for five weeks due to a hamstring injury.
Raphinha, 29, incurred the injury during the first half of Brazil’s 2-1 friendly loss to France at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, on Thursday.
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After being substituted at halftime, examinations conducted by the Brazil medical staff on Friday confirmed a right hamstring injury.
Raphinha will now return to Barcelona for rehabilitation, but he will not be available again until May and will miss several significant upcoming matches for his team.
Barça will face Atlético three times in the next few weeks, beginning with a visit to the Metropolitano next Saturday as they aim to maintain their four-point advantage over Real Madrid at the top of LaLiga.
They will then meet Atlético again over two legs in the Champions League quarterfinal, with the first leg set for Spotify Camp Nou on April 8 and the second leg in Madrid on April 14.
If Barça triumph in that matchup, they would then host Arsenal or Sporting CP in the first leg of the semifinal at the end of April, with the return fixture scheduled for early May, matches from which Raphinha would also likely be absent.
This marks the third instance this season that Raphinha, who has scored 19 goals in 31 appearances this term, has sustained a hamstring injury in his right leg.
He missed 13 matches for club and country between September and November and an additional three matches in January and February.
Marcus Rashford may gain from Raphinha’s latest injury, with the English forward being the most probable candidate to occupy his position on the left side of the attack, although coach Hansi Flick has other alternatives.
Dani Olmo and Fermín López have both played wide in the past, as has Ferran Torres, while João Cancelo and Roony Bardghji are also options to fill in if necessary.
