Barcelona player who worries Xavi ahead of trip to Saudi Arabia for the Spanish Super Cup

Barcelona started the year with an important 2-1 victory against Las Palmas at the Gran Canaria Stadium. They had had a bad start and Munir El Haddadi had netted the opener for the hosts, but in the second half things changed: Ferran Torres scored the leveller and in the last minute Ilkay Gundogan grabbed the winner from the spot, after a debatable decision of the referee.

The victory allowed Los Blaugranas to stay 7 points behind the leaders of the La Liga standings, Real Madrid and Girona, who on Wednesday had won their respective matches against Real Mallorca and Atlético Madrid. It also gave them some calm, after weeks in which they had received harsh criticism from fans and the press for their poor performances.

Now they will be almost a month without competing in the Spanish league. This is because next Sunday they will debut in the Copa del Rey 2024 against Barbastro (a team from Spain's fourth division) in the round of 32, and then they will fly to Saudi Arabia to compete in the Spanish Super Cup. On Thursday, January 11, they will play Osasuna in the semifinals and, should they advance to the final, they will face the winner of Real Madrid vs Atletico Madrid.

This will be the first major objective for Barcelona in 2024, as they will have the opportunity to win a title. That's why coach Xavi Hernandez intends to count on his best players for those games. However, he is worried about one of them.

Who is it?

Joao Cancelo had to be replaced during the first half of Thursday's match against Las Palmas due to a knee problem. This had caused concern, as it was feared that it could be a serious injury. This Friday the club shared a statement on social media that read: "João Cancelo has a strain of the internal lateral ligament of the left knee. He is out and his evolution will mark the availability." The good news is that the Portuguese defender did not suffer a serious injury. But his presence in the Spanish Super Cup is unlikely.