Injured Barcelona superstar unlikely to be fit in time for their UCL clash against Stade Brestois: Reports
Lamine Yamal is likely to miss Barcelona's next two games, according to journalist Fernando Polo. The Catalans will face Celta Vigo on Saturday, November 23, in LaLiga, before welcoming Stade Brestois to the Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys on Tuesday, November 26, in the Champions League.
Yamal picked up an ankle injury during the Spanish giants' game against Crvena zvezda earlier this month. The 17-year-old was initially included in Barcelona's squad for the game against Real Sociedad before the international break, but was unable to play.
The Catalans lost the match 0-1 and would prefer their star man to return immediately. The Spanish giants were initially hopeful that he could complete his recovery during the international break and be available for the game against Celta Vigo.
However, the Spaniard doesn't want to use infiltrations to hasten his recovery process. Instead, Yamal prefers to heal naturally, and he will not be available for this weekend's game.
There are also doubts if he can regain his fitness in time for next week's Champions League game. Barcelona are in a spot of bother following the defeat to Real Sociedad and cannot afford to drop points against Celta Vigo.
While the Catalans are leading the title race for now, Real Madrid are six points behind in second, with a game in hand. Hansi Flick needs a win over the weekend to calm any nerves, but it appears like he won't be able to call upon Yamal for the job. The German manager will also be eyeing three points against Brest next week, with his team on sixth in the Champions League table after four games.
How many goals has Lamine Yamal scored for Barcelona this season?
Lamine Yamal exploded into the scene at Barcelona last season. He excelled in the right-forward role under Xavi, finishing the campaign with seven goals and nine assists from 50 games. 30 of those were from the start!
With the Catalans replacing Xavi with Hansi Flick over the summer, there were some concerns whether the teenager could hold on to his form. But Yamal has proven his naysayers wrong and has hit a higher gear under the German manager.
The Spaniard now has six goals and eight assists from 16 games across competitions, all but one of which were starts. He is already being hailed as Lionel Messi's successor at Barcelona, so the club are likely to be cautious about his recovery.