Jules Koundé: muscular twinge without injury in Villarreal

FC Barcelona began its week of vacation for the winter break on Monday with no new developments regarding the list of injured players. Against Villarreal, Jules Koundé raised alarms due to a twinge in the hamstrings of his right leg. Initially, a muscle tear was feared, but it turned out to be nothing serious.

Hansi Flick himself calmed the waters at the end of the match on matchday 17 of LaLiga. "I think he's fine. In the last three days, he had problems. He was sick. He said he would give his best. He felt some cramps. We will do tests when we get to Barcelona, but it doesn't seem serious. We hope so," said the manager in the post-match press conference.

Finally, after the squad returned to Catalonia, **Koundé went on vacation without going to the infirmary**, understanding that there was no injury to treat. Only a muscular discomfort associated with the wear and tear of a schedule that included nine matches in the last month of competition, from November 22 to December 21

Koundé will return to work with the squad on December 29

Of these nine matches, Jules played all of them, six in full and seven as a starter. The Paris native only rested in the Copa del Rey (he came on in the 75th minute) and against Alavés (he played the second half). The Villarreal match, in fact, was only the second game in which the right-back was substituted at halftime, in this case as a precaution

Koundé called for Barça's medical staff and initial impressions pointed to an injury that would sideline him for about three weeks. This would have jeopardized his participation in the Spanish Super Cup, where the Catalans will face Athletic on January 7 in Jeddah

Marc Casadó came on in his place, occupying the right flank as he did against Guadalajara. In the first half of 25/26, Eric García took the '23's' spot in five league matchdays. Even so, Jules has already accumulated 1,779 minutes of action in 24 games (19 as a starter) in which he has scored 3 goals and provided 2 assists.

Barring any surprises, the French international and the rest of the squad will return to work on Monday, December 29, beginning preparations for the first match of 2026, against Espanyol on Saturday, January 3 (9:00 PM CEST). For that match, Hansi Flick is confident of having Pedri González back, who missed the Villarreal game due to a minor injury to his left leg

Flick will recover two key players before Espanyol-Barça

Dani Olmo, for his part, could receive medical clearance before the Spanish Super Cup, once he completes his recovery from the shoulder dislocation he suffered on December 2nd against Atlético. Andreas Christensen and Gavi are, for the moment, Barcelona's only long-term absentees.

Ronald Araujo, for his part, must also return to training next week, once the leave granted by the club to the Uruguayan to deal with his emotional slump has been completed. The 'charrúa' has been sidelined since November 25, when he was sent off before halftime against Chelsea