The Spanish National Team will play four more matches between October and November to close their qualifying round for the 2026 World Cup. After Lamine Yamal's injury during the September break and Hansi Flick's public complaints, FC Barcelona does not want to take any more risks with their internationals in the upcoming matches.
The '10' returned from the break with a pubic injury that Barça believes could have been avoided. Lamine played 79 minutes against Bulgaria (0-3) and 73' against Turkey (0-6) despite having muscle discomfort.
The player took analgesics to relieve lower back pain and, in addition, remained on the field for most of the second half despite the fact that, in both matches, La Roja went to halftime with a 3-goal lead.
Flick and Barça, upset with Luis de la Fuente
Hence, Flick pointed directly at coach Luis de la Fuente for the decision to keep the 18-year-old player on the field, taking a risk that, in the end, the club has paid for. The player from Mataró was not available against Valencia on Sunday and, almost certainly, he will also be out for the Champions League debut against Newcastle (Thursday 18th at 21:00 in England).
"I have not spoken with the coach (De la Fuente), only by text. My Spanish is not good and his English is not good either. Communication could be better. I was a coach and I know how difficult it is, but communication must be good," Flick commented in the press conference prior to the Barça-Valencia match.
De la Fuente, for now, has not responded to the Barcelona coach's criticisms. However, before the visit to Turkey, the Spanish coach assured that all his players were physically fit. Not in vain, the coach repeated his lineup from the match against Bulgaria, with Lamine forming the offensive trident alongside Nico Williams and Mikel Oyarzabal.
The Athletic forward, like Yamal, returned injured from the break, in his case due to a twinge in his left adductor. Nico was out against Alavés and is also expected to miss the Champions League debut against Arsenal this Tuesday at San Mamés (18:15 CEST).
Deco-Karanka, Barça's formula to avoid future problems with Spain's internationals
In that sense, one of the strategies that Barça will implement from now on will be to strengthen the relationship between the sports management led by Deco and the technical director of development and the men's absolute national team, Aitor Karanka. The idea is to maintain permanent contact during each break to make joint decisions, for the well-being of the players.
Karanka, former assistant coach to José Mourinho at Real Madrid, took office last July. The Basque coach also maintains direct communication with Luis de la Fuente and the rest of the RFEF coaches. Therefore, the club can also take advantage of his figure to control what happens with its internationals in the youth categories.
Unlike Lamine, who played 73 minutes against Turkey despite not having trained normally due to previous discomfort in his back, Frenkie de Jong was sent back to Barcelona once the midfielder presented pain in the back of his right leg, near the gluteus.
Ronald Koeman protected the player from Arkel by ruling him out of the match against Lithuania and, finally, De Jong only suffered a minor injury. Therefore, he returned to training this Monday and is expected to be available on Thursday against Newcastle.
Yamal, on the other hand, seems to have to spend a few more days in the Barça infirmary to avoid a significant injury. The last time the player from Mataró was out for a Champions League match was in the fourth matchday of the 24/25 group stage, against Brest. At that time, the winger was suffering from an injury to his right ankle.