Hansi Flick, head coach of FC Barcelona, has launched his 22-man squad listing forward of Wednesday’s journey to England, the place the Catalan facet will make their Champions League debut in opposition to Newcastle United at St. James’ Park. The most important headline is the absence of Lamine Yamal, who continues to wrestle with pubic discomfort, and the return of Frenkie de Jong, now absolutely match after lacking the Valencia conflict.
The Dutch midfielder suffered a setback throughout his first worldwide match with the Netherlands earlier this month however has recovered and is anticipated to start out in opposition to the Magpies. For Flick, having De Jong again in midfield is a serious enhance as Barça appears to be like to start out sturdy in a gaggle stage that might be extra aggressive than ever.
Barcelona’s touring social gathering departed at 11 AM CET from Josep Tarradellas Airport. Upon touchdown in Newcastle, the squad settled on the Melià Newcastle Resort, the place they’ll stay till kickoff. Later within the night, Andreas Christensen and Flick are scheduled to talk on the pre-match press convention, adopted by the crew’s coaching session at St. James’ Park at 7:00 PM.
Newcastle United will even observe their routine, with Eddie Howe and star midfielder Bruno Guimarães addressing the media earlier within the day earlier than their very own coaching session on the iconic stadium.
Barcelona continues to supply nice gamers at La Masía, and it’s demonstrating this within the Champions League.
A joint journey with La Masia’s subsequent technology
For years, Barcelona has maintained the custom of getting each the senior crew and the U-19 squad journey collectively for Champions League and Youth League fixtures. UEFA’s scheduling permits the youth crew to face the identical opponents simply hours earlier than the senior match.
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This time, 23 first-team gamers beneath Flick and 20 youth gamers beneath coach Pol Planas boarded the identical constitution flight to Newcastle. The U-19s will face their very own problem in opposition to Newcastle’s academy facet within the Youth League earlier within the day, setting the stage for a double-header of Barça vs. Magpies motion.
One of many names creating pleasure in La Masia is Ebrima, a younger midfielder who symbolizes the academy’s world attain. His household story is inspiring: his father moved from Gambia to Spain in 2007, settling in Cerdanyola (Mataró). Ebrima joined him in 2017 on the age of seven, forsaking his early childhood in Africa to pursue his dream of turning into knowledgeable footballer.
Now considered one in all Barcelona’s brightest academy prospects, Ebrima’s journey displays the cultural and social variety that continues to form the membership’s youth system. Whereas nonetheless solely a youngster, his progress is being intently watched by the teaching workers and followers alike, with many tipping him to observe within the footsteps of La Masia legends.
