Less than a week remains before Barcelona lock horns with their eternal rivals Real Madrid in the first El Clasico of the 2022/23 season.
The clash is set to take place on Sunday, October 16, at the Santiago Bernabeu, with the top spot in the La Liga standings up for grabs. Barça are currently leading Los Blancos, thanks to a healthier goal difference.
As the match gets closer and closer, the injury woes at Barcelona seem to be not letting up whatsoever. While Xavi Hernandez welcomed Frenkie de Jong back into the fold against Celta Vigo on Sunday, several other key members remain sidelined.
Ronald Araujo is definitively ruled out of the Clasico, while question marks remain over the involvement of Memphis Depay and Andreas Christensen as well.
Earlier reports had indicated that the Blaugrana could be given a boost as both Franck Kessie and Jules Kounde would receive medical green lights for the trip to Madrid.
However, according to the latest update from Javi Miguel of AS, Kounde’s availability for El Clasico is ‘very complicated’ at this point.
Interestingly, it was the same journalist who had reported that the Frenchman would receive an all-clear from the medical department ahead of the encounter against Real Madrid. But, he is now claiming that it might not be the case.
Javi Miguel reports that Kounde has zero chances of making it back for the UEFA Champions League game versus Inter Milan on Wednesday. And he then adds that the 23-year-old’s availability for El Clasico is ‘very complicated’ at this moment.
It leaves manager Xavi with a huge headache as he will have to continue working with Gerard Pique and Eric Garcia as his only senior centre-back options and Sergi Roberto as the only natural right-back.
Reports are suggesting that Alejandro Balde, who has started the last two league outings as a makeshift right-back, could again find himself slotting into the unfamiliar position to tackle the threat of Vinicius Jr on Sunday.
As for Kounde, it remains to be seen how the defender’s recovery evolves in the coming days.
