INJURED: This is the Barcelona infirmary before Elche

FC Barcelona hosts Elche this Sunday at Montjuïc for matchday 11 of LaLiga EA Sports 2025/26. Once again, the Barça team will have a significant number of players in the infirmary, with 6 players ruled out of the match due to injury.

Pedri González was the latest to join the list of absentees due to physical problems. The player from Tegueste was ruled out of the match against Elche due to suspension (he was sent off in the Clásico), but will ultimately be out for around a month due to a tear in his left femoral biceps suffered this week.

'8' is, for the moment, the only player who has played in all of Barça's matches as a starter in the 25/26 season (13), in addition to leading the squad in minutes played (1,099). In principle, his return was expected at the end of November, but everything indicates that the player from the Canary Islands will be sidelined until the beginning of December.

Lewandowski and Olmo return to Barça on Sunday

However, everything will depend on Pedri's evolution in the coming weeks. Robert Lewandowski, for example, was expected to be out for 4 to 6 weeks due to a torn left hamstring, but the '9' has recovered sooner than expected and will be on the bench against Elche.

The same is true of Dani Olmo. Hansi Flick avoided taking risks with the Terrassa native for the Clásico, but the '20' has now fully recovered from his injury to his left calf. The attacking midfielder will also be on the bench, but like 'Lewy' he hopes to get some minutes in the second half.

Both returned injured from the last international break and have had a rather poor start to the season. Lewandowski has 4 goals in 9 games (4 as a starter), while Olmo only contributed 1 goal and 2 assists in 10 appearances (5 in the starting XI).

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Joan García and Raphinha will return after the November break

Raphinha training at the Ciutat Esportiva

The forecast is more conservative with Raphinha. The Brazilian relapsed from his right thigh injury before the Clásico and will not return to action until after the third break of the season. With that, in addition to the match against Elche, he will miss the matches against Bruges (Champions League) and Celta.

Joan García, however, is very close to being medically cleared. The player from Sallent has completed his recovery from the meniscus in his left knee well, although the club ultimately gave him several more weeks of rest so that the area would heal completely.

In that sense, while it is likely that the Catalan goalkeeper will be fit to play this week, he will not return to the Barça goal until after the break, against Athletic. Szczesny has responded well as his replacement and there is no reason to take risks.

With Andreas Christensen, the outlook is more reserved. The Dane missed the last two matches due to a medical condition (viral infection, gastroenteritis) and, in addition, suffered a minor injury to his right soleus this week. Therefore, he will not play against Elche, although he could travel to Bruges.

Ter Stegen and Gavi, however, remain sidelined for a long time. The German could return in December, while the Andalusian is not expected back before February 2026. Barça has surpassed a dozen muscular problems between August and October, and the idea is to reinforce care in the management of minutes to stop the plague of injuries.

The injured FC Barcelona players against Elche

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