Frenkie de Jong has not trained with the group

De Jong did not attend the facilities in Sant Joan Despí, but had the club´s permission to be absent. Sources from Barça consulted by the media assured that there is no injury behind his absence and that it is exclusively a private matter, unrelated to the sporting field. Out of respect for his privacy, no further details about the situation have been provided.

More absences with the club´s permission

De Jong´s absence joins those of Marcus Rashford and Pau Cubarsí, who were also not present at today´s training, also with the authorization of the blue and garnet entity. In the case of the English forward, it is expected that he will return to Barcelona tonight on a private flight and that he will rejoin training tomorrow with the rest of the group, in preparation for the match against Elche, scheduled for next weekend.

Bad news with Pedri

The day brought both good and bad news at the Ciutat Esportiva. On the positive side, Dani Olmo completed the training normally after two weeks training on the sidelines, while Robert Lewandowski also returned to work with the group after recovering from the injury suffered with the Polish national team. However, the negative note was provided by Pedri, who will have to remain out for between five and six weeks due to a new muscle injury. The Canary Islander will miss several important commitments on the calendar. Although an absence of about three weeks was initially estimated, medical tests confirmed a longer recovery period, which will leave him out of several key matches of the season.

Preparations for the next match

The team will resume preparations for the next commitment this Thursday, awaiting De Jong and the other absentees to rejoin the group´s dynamics as soon as possible. Both Rashford and Cubarsí will also return to the orders of Hansi Flick to prepare for the match against Elche, a newly promoted team that is in eighth place in the table after a surprising start to the season.