Barcelona internally believes that the wave of injuries is due to bad luck + the impact of a small lineup, and many main players will return

Hupu, October 16th, The AthleticUK Spanish reporter team wrote Barcelona’s special injury weekly.

Last season, before Barcelona’s Champions League match against Dortmund, the club’s senior management held an informal briefing with reporters.

Among the many topics discussed, board members addressed the consequences of not participating in this summer's revamped Club World Cup in the United States.

Given Barcelona's ongoing financial woes, the prospect of missing out on prize money (potentially $125 million for the champion) is significant. But they also agreed that not participating in the Club World Cup is good news for Flick.

"This is a blessing for the players because they can have a good rest this summer," an executive said. "We don't know how the participating teams will respond, because next season is about to start, and the players are likely to be unable to participate due to injuries."

However, Barcelona still backfires.

Forward Lewandowski was the latest player to be added to the injured list on Tuesday. The Poland international suffered a hamstring tear this week and will be out for a month, according to club sources. This means he is expected to miss the match against Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu.

In the past week, Olmo and Ferran Torres withdrew from the national team due to muscle problems. Olmo has a calf injury and is doubtful for El Clasico, while Ferran may play against Girona this week.

The situation in Yamal is also well known. Barcelona's 18-year-old star forward suffered a groin injury after the international break against Spain last month and has still not recovered.

His initial injury prompted an angry reaction from Flick, who was dissatisfied with the timing of his game in Spain. Yamal has been unable to feature with Spain this month due to injury, but he resumed regular training with Barcelona on Monday. Goalkeeper Ter Stegen may also be included on the long-term list after undergoing back surgery at the end of July.

This means that Barcelona has a total of 9 players injured, 7 of whom are important members of Flick's plan, which was something that no one within Barcelona could have predicted before the start of the season.

Dressing room sources - who, like everyone cited in this article, requested anonymity to protect relationships - are baffled as to how Barca got to this point. They enjoyed a full pre-season, with tours of Korea and Japan in place of the Club World Cup.

Members of the coaching staff also believe that they have given the players appropriate rest time this season to avoid injuries.

Many of the above-mentioned injuries are considered bad luck, and Garvey and Garcia's meniscal tears are considered unfortunate injuries that are difficult to prevent.

However, muscle problems are another matter. While it is difficult to determine the true cause of these injuries, dressing room sources admit that Barcelona's 22-man first-team squad is actually small, with players from the club's La Masia academy traveling with the team every week.

That's not a bad thing - the club has chosen to involve every player in order to make it easier to manage the team.

"But once a player is injured, the options for rotation and rest will be reduced, so the possibility of new injuries will be greater," a behind-the-scenes staff member said.

Another statement is related to the team's performance this season. At this time last season, Barcelona was four points ahead of Real Madrid in the La Liga standings. The team performed well and quickly found their comfort zone, controlling the rhythm of the game and motivating the players.

"Some games, it felt like training before a game," a locker room source said of Barcelona's physical condition last season.

In contrast, they are currently two points behind Real Madrid in the La Liga standings and need to come back to defeat Levante, Oviedo and Real Sociedad. They have already drawn with Rayo Vallecano and lost to Paris Saint-Germain and Sevilla respectively - games that have given them little respite and no sign of letting their guard down.

The good news for Barcelona fans is that the three players may return as early as this weekend. Yamal, Fermin and Torres are basically unharmed from their injuries and can be included in the squad for the game against Girona.

But Rafinha is still recovering, the chances of Olmo and Garcia participating in the El Clasico are slim, and Lewandowski will definitely not participate in that game.

Two weeks ago, Pedri and Paulo Cubasi blamed Barcelona's 4-1 loss to Sevilla on a lack of intensity. Flick had expected to address the issue immediately after the international break - but now, at a crucial period of the season, he must do so with a significantly weakened squad.