Today broke the news that the young star midfielder of Barcelona, Pedri Gonzalez has suffered a muscle injury which could see him sidelined potentially for several weeks. So, it begs the question: who will replace the young Canarian?
There are several options on the table as highlighted by SPORT, but the most obvious choice is Gundogan. The German midfielder has already been deployed in multiple positions in the box midfield setup, and can now stabilize his place in the starting XI alongside the Romeu-De Jong-Gavi trio.
The latter has been subject to plenty of speculations during the summer as the signing of Romeu and Gundogan could have shadowed his role in the team, but as Pedri is now set to miss potentially several weeks of action, Gavi can recover his indisputable place as a left-sided false winger in the starting XI that he occupied last season too.
Another natural option could be Sergi Roberto, the first captain of Barcelona who also played in that position when Pedri struggled with injuries last season. Also, Fermin Lopez who broke into the Blaugrana team during the pre-season is another favorite of Xavi, while Aleix Garrido and Noah Darvich can be other emerging options from Barca Atletic.
With Pedri out injured, Xavi can also look to reinstate a classic 4-3-3 formation. With Raphinha having one more game to his suspension, the Puppet Master has further 5 forward options in Ferran Torres, Ansu Fati, Lamine Yamal, Abde Ezzalzouli, and Robert Lewandowski. These options would enable the manager to pick a 3-man frontline without any problems.
Indeed, this tweak could mean less control in the midfield but more attacking firepower with potent candidates to fill the left-wing spot. Either Torres, Fati, or Abde can occupy this role, while Yamal (or even the same Abde or Ferran) could play on the right side, while Lewandowski (or maybe even Torres) remains the striker.
