At a glance
- Marc Bernal still isn’t ready to return to FC Barcelona action.
- The midfielder suffered an ankle sprain in a 2-1 La Liga win over Atletico Madrid a fornight ago.
- In a race again time, he failed to make it to the squad list for the 4-3 aggregate loss to the same opposition in the Champions League midweek.
Marc Bernal continues to be unavailable for FC Barcelona two weeks after suffering an ankle sprain during a 2-1 La Liga win over Atletico Madrid.
Reports said he’d be out for 10 days. Bernal therefore missed a 2-0 Champions League quarterfinal first leg defeat to the same opposition at the Spotify Camp Nou but aimed to be fit for the return fixture.
In the end, however, Bernal didn’t make the squad list for the 2-1 win. He therefore played no part in a 4-3 aggregate loss in the Metropolitano.
A fortnight later, Bernal’s still not available to Hansi Flick. According to SPORT, he’s yet to take the final step in recovery.
Bernal didn’t train with the Barcelona group
Flick’s men returned to the Joan Gamper CT after three days off on Saturday. Not training with the group, though, Bernal was absent.
This weekend sees Atleti face Real Sociedad in the Copa del Rey final. It means there are no La Liga fixtures, and no rush with Bernal either.
Barca’s nine-point advantage at the top has the La Liga title practically wrapped up. And with Frenkie de Jong returning to full fitness, the pivot positions in midfield are covered.
Still it’s a shame it’s come to this for Bernal. Getting over his ACL tear in 2024, he stepped up in De Jong’s absence with a string of top performances.
Not only proving himself worth of the elite with quick fire passes from a retreated position, Bernal is also a goalscoring threat netting five in all competitions.
This takes in a double against Aletico and an important strike against Newcastle United in the Champions League.
But with the Blaugrana’s European dream now over, Bernal has to focus on returning to the pitch and perhaps even making a late push for Luis de la Fuente’s Spain World Cup team.
