Raphinha to miss two Barcelona matches with thigh injury — BBC Sport

In Spain, Barcelona’s Brazilian forward Raphinha will miss the team’s upcoming matches against Getafe in La Liga and Galatasaray in the Champions League due to a right thigh injury. The footballer returned from the Brazil national team with the injury after being substituted at half-time in the match against Australia.

As BBC Sport reports, the Catalans’ head coach Hansi Flick described the injury as not serious but stressed the need to carefully manage the player’s recovery. According to the coach, Raphinha suffered three injuries last season.

An important loss for the La Liga leaders

The 29-year-old Raphinha has scored 14 goals and provided three assists at the start of the season. Barcelona have won eight consecutive matches in all competitions, lead the La Liga table and are five points ahead of Atletico and Betis. Real Madrid are one further point behind.

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This season, the Brazilian has mainly played as a false nine rather than on the wing. In their opening Champions League match, Flick’s team defeated Feyenoord 5-1. Overall, the Catalans have scored 36 goals and conceded eight.

Replacement options

Raphinha’s absence in the next two matches is expected to be covered by Gabriel Jesus, who joined Barcelona from Arsenal in September. Anthony Gordon, Dani Olmo or Karim Adeyemi can also play as a false nine.

Barcelona also face Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League and Real Madrid in the Spanish championship this month.