FC Barcelona’s travelling squad to Paris Saint-Germain has one major surprise.
FC Barcelona’s travelling squad to Paris Saint-Germain has one major surprise.
Pedri, Frenkie de Jong and Andreas Christensen have all been named in the squad list despite not receiving medical clearance for Wednesday’s Champions League first leg squad in the French capital.
De Jong and Pedri both suffered respective ankle sprain and thigh injuries in the first half of a 0-0 draw against Copa del Rey winners Athletic Club in San Mames at the beginning of last month, while Christensen has had constant achilles niggles over the past few weeks.
On Saturday, De Jong was practically given the green light when completing the duration of a training match that lasted around an hour.
Pedri and Christensen could only manage a half, but still head coach Xavi Hernandez has insisted on taking them to France.
Neither man is expected to start, but they will at least be in the locker room and in and around the team for cameraderie even if they don’t pick up a single minute at the Parc des Princes.
This logic also applies to Gavi, who has never had the remotest of chances of featuring this week or next for the deciding leg in the Montjuic Stadium.
His season was terminated when suffering an ACL rupture while on international duty for Spain in November.
Still, the youngster has travelled to Paris with his teammates and will look to give them a boost as best he can from the sidelines.
According to L’Equipe, PSG would like to make the trip one with no return after holding talks with the midfielder’s camp.
Barca president Joan Laporta has already confirmed that the club turned down a $217 million from the Qatar-backed club for Lamine Yamal, but interest in Gavi remains concrete after initially being raised by his former Spain boss Luis Enrique who now manages the Parisians.
No agreement was struck between PSG and Gavi’s entourage, but they vowed to stay in touch.
The 19-year-old is said to be happy at Barca, where he has been since he was 11, and getting past PSG in the last eight would sure boost his morale in Catalonia even if he can’t play any part in the proceedings.
