Between injuries, suspensions and departures, Barça's problems to play Villarreal

The start of the 2023/24 season has brought Xavi Hernandez more worries than satisfaction. Not only has the team's performance been below expectations, but they have also had to deal with unexpected problems that have made the coach's job difficult.

In the debut against Getafe, Raphinha was sent off for a blow to an opponent and received a two-match suspension. As a result, he did not play against Cadiz and will not be able to play against Villarreal. And then came the injuries: Ronald Araujo was unable to be in the last game due to muscle pain and is still not recovered, while Pedri was injured this week and will be off the field until after the international break in September.

And as if this were not enough, the serious financial problems that Barcelona has been facing for years have prevented them from signing some of the players that Xavi requested, such as Joao Cancelo, Giovani Lo Celso and Joao Felix. In addition, they have not yet been able to register Iñaki Peña and Iñigo Martínez. The good news is that defender Marcos Alonso has been cleared to play.

With this scenario, Xavi decided that the starting lineup to play this Sunday against Villarreal at the Estadio de la Cerámica will be: Marc-André Ter Stegen; Sergi Roberto, Jules Koundé, Andreas Christensen, Marcos Alonso; Ilkay Gündogan, Oriol Romeu, Frenkie De Jong, Gavi; Lamine Yamal, Robert Lewandowski.

Two players could leave

Barcelona are not only trying to sign a right-back, an attacking midfielder and a forward, the players Xavi requested, but are also negotiating the departure of some others. The Catalan side need to reduce the total amount of wages to be able to sign new players, so they are targeting Clement Lenglet and Ansu Fati. The French defender is wanted by Sevilla, where he played between 2017 and 2018. The Spanish winger is not satisfied with the little prominence he has had in the first games of this season and is considering leaving.