FC Barcelona are set to face Galatasaray away from home on Tuesday in their second Champions League fixture. However, the Blaugrana will be without their captain, Raphinha, who scored twice against Feyenoord on Matchday 1.
Why is Raphinha not playing today?
The Brazilian winger picked up a thigh injury while representing Seleção during the international break and returned to Barcelona for further medical examinations.
Subsequent reports confirmed that Raphinha had suffered “a small muscle edema in the posterior part of his right thigh”.
“It’s not a big injury,” Flick revealed ahead of Barcelona’s game against Getafe. However, the German manager added, “but it’s something… we have to take care of.”
Raphinha was subsequently ruled out of Saturday’s LaLiga fixture against Getafe.
After assessing his thigh during Friday’s training, the 29-year-old was ruled out for at least another week, with Barcelona potentially welcoming him back for their LaLiga clash against Real Betis on October 17.
His absence leaves the Catalan side without a key attacking option, particularly as he currently leads the league’s Golden Boot race.
With Raphinha unavailable, fellow Brazilian Gabriel Jesus stepped in at centre-forward against Getafe and found the net in Barcelona’s 3-0 victory, extending the club’s perfect start to the season across all competitions.
For Tuesday’s meeting with Galatasaray in Istanbul, however, Flick opted for Dani Olmo in the forward line as Barcelona look to maintain their momentum in the Champions League.