FC Barcelona coach Xavi Hernandez has received mixed news on the injury front in the last few days. While he has been able to welcome players like Joao Felix and Raphinha back from their injuries, he has also seen two key players, Frenkie de Jong and Pedri, sidelined for several weeks with their own physical problems.
As things stand, another player that Xavi Hernandez would now be looking to recover in the coming days is the winger Ferran Torres. According to Diario AS, the Barcelona head coach will have to wait till Monday to find out whether the former Manchester City forward will be available for the key match against Napoli.
Everything indicates that Torres will return to group training on Monday, and if he completes the session without any problems, he will receive a medical discharge for the upcoming Champions League game. On the other hand, if he does not feel 100% ready, he will return to availability for the La Liga match against Atletico Madrid next week.
Torres has been sidelined since the match between Barcelona and Osasuna that took place on January 31st. At that time, it was forecasted that he would miss four to five weeks of action. Now that this deadline has passed, one can reasonably expect him to return to action soon.
However, even if he returns from injury, he will not slot right back into the starting eleven, but would play more of the role of a disruptor on whom Xavi can rely to provide an extra attacking spark if his team needs it.
Whichever role Xavi gives him, there is no doubt that Ferran’s return will be a significant boost for the Barcelona trainer. In addition to the possible return of Torres, Xavi will also have Marcos Alonso back who has been out for several months because of his back issue.