At a glance
- Eric Garcia and Alejandro Balde trained on the grass on Tuesday and look ready to return to the FC Barcelona fold following the international break.
- Jules Kounde and Frenkie de Jong worked out in the gym, but should also be fit for when club football takes over the calendar again.
- With a number of stars off representing their countries, a quartet of La Masia hopefuls had the chance to join the group and impress Flick.
As reported by Mundo Deportivo’s Javier Gascon from the Joan Gamper CT, previously injured FC Barcelona stars Alejandro Balde and Eric Garcia trained on the grass on Tuesday showing signs of being ready to return to action.
Balde injured the distal hamstring in his left thigh during the 3-0 Copa del Rey semifinal leg win over Atletico Madrid at the start of the month, which brought about a 4-3 loss on aggregate.
Then last week, Eric hobbled off the pitch at the Spotify Camp Nou relatively early into the 7-2 Champions League last 16 second leg thrashing of Newcastle United.
Though he wasn’t diagnosed with a particular knock, Eric’s workload has been managed with caution so as not to find him joining the sick list at a key point of the 2025/2026 where his multi-role skills are required.
FC Barcelona should eventually welcome back four stars, but first come Balde and Eric
As already explored by ReadBarcelona, an injured trio of Balde, Jules Kounde and Frenkie de Jong are expected to have staggered comebacks following the international pause, as Barça once more heads into a trio of vital UCL and La Liga games against Atleti and a derby showdown with Espanyol.
Unless there are any surprise developments, however, it’s currently Eric and Balde that should be available to Flick primarily, for the first Atleti fixture in the league away from home on April 4.
Elsewhere, Kounde and De Jong trained in the gym following a specific plan.
New faces were also found on the Joan Gamper CT turf
At least in terms of training with the first team that is.
Fringe La Masia products such as Tommy Marques and Alvaro Cortes were there once more, but so too were Juvenil A hopefuls Baba Kourouma (a left-footed centre-back), Roberto Tomas (a 16-year-old playmaker), Nuhu Fofana (a 17-year-old centre-forward) and Alex Gonzalez (a 19-year-old winger who arrived from prestigious Catalan youth club Damm in the January transfer window).
Just ask the likes of Marc Bernal, Marc Casado, and even Marques what can happen when Flick offers the chance to impress and likes the look of what you can offer his outfit.
Mundo Deportivo explains that only two training sessions will be held this week. After Wednesday’s, he will then give the remaining team members not on international duty a five day rest while injured parties continue their assigned recovery processes.
Eric and Balde returns are a boost for Flick and FC Barcelona
Though we shouldn’t expect them to start the Atleti match on April 4, in the pressure cooker atmosphere of the Metropolitano, their availability is still a welcomed benefit for Flick.
As things stand, it could be Joao Cancelo that starts in Balde’s left back spot while Xavi Espart or Ronald Araujo is the right back where Eric can play.
Centre-back spots are currently occupied by Pau Cubarsi and Gerard Martin as Eric provides options in defensive midfield too.
Yet it’s difficult to see him immediately dislodging a rising Marc Bernal while De Jong also works hard in the background ready to make his own comeback.
