Barcelona play their inaugural game of 2024 on Thursday evening, as Xavi's side hit the road to face Las Palmas in La Liga action.
La Blaugrana drew the curtain on a relatively successful 2023 by beating Almeria in a 3-2 thriller on December 20, where a Raphinha strike and unlikely double from Sergi Roberto did the damage.
The reigning Spanish champions are still playing catch-up when it comes to the defence of their title, though, sitting fourth in the table and seven points behind first-placed Real Madrid and second-placed Girona.
Here, Sports Mole rounds up Barcelona's latest injury and suspension news ahead of their clash with Las Palmas, who occupy ninth spot in the La Liga rankings at present.
© Reuters
Status: Out
Type of injury: Back
Possible return date: Unknown
Marc-Andre ter Stegen is currently recuperating from the back operation which forced him to withdraw from the Germany squad in November, and he is not expected to be back at Xavi's disposal until the middle of February.
© Reuters
Status: Out
Type of injury: Knee
Possible return date: Unknown
Former Kopa Trophy winner Gavi is on the long road to recovery from a major ACL injury, which is expected to rule the Spain international out for the remainder of the season and Euro 2024.
© Reuters
Status: Out
Type of injury: Back
Possible return date: Unknown
On New Year's Eve, Barcelona announced that experienced left-back Marcos Alonso would soon be going under the knife to address a back injury, and the club have not put a timeframe on the Spaniard's recovery.
© Reuters
Status: Out
Type of injury: Hamstring
Possible return date: Unknown
Inigo Martinez has been sidelined since sustaining a hamstring injury in the warm-up to December's clash with Atletico Madrid, and while he should return within the next couple of weeks, Thursday's game is expected to come too soon.
© Reuters
Status: Major doubt
Type of injury: Muscle
Possible return date: January 4 (vs. Las Palmas)
Pedri missed Barcelona's triumph over Almeria on December 30 on account of sustaining a muscular injury in training, and having failed to take part in practice on New Year's Eve, it would be a surprise to see him return to action in Gran Canaria.
BARCELONA'S SUSPENSION LIST
Barcelona have no players banned for this contest.
Ben Knapton
