Marc Casado will replace the suspended Frenkie de Jong in the Barcelona starting lineup when they welcome Athletic Club to Spotify Camp Nou on Saturday.

Barcelona will be eager to continue the recent unbeaten run when they host Athletic Club at the newly refurbished Spotify Camp Nou on Saturday afternoon. Hansi Flick has received a mixed bag of updates on the team news front ahead of his side’s latest fixture.

Frenkie de Jong is the latest absentee after being sent off against Celta Vigo before the international break. The Dutch midfielder has joined Marc-Andre ter Stegen, Gavi, and Pedri on the sidelines. Additionally, Flick has been sweating over Marcus Rashford’s fitness, as the English international has been recovering from illness.

However, there is some good news, as Joan Garcia is fit and available, while Raphinha is closing in on returning after resuming training. Meanwhile, during his pre-match press conference, Flick provided fitness updates on several players. The German tactician also discussed Lamine Yamal and the situation surrounding the youngster.

The Barcelona boss said, “He [Yamal] has been working very hard these past few weeks and I am very happy with what I have seen. That’s all I can say. There are ups and downs, but he has been handling the situation well. Lamine is our player. We care about our players. The national team also looks after them, and I think it was the right decision. He works hard, he’s very disciplined, and it’s a very important step for him to learn how to manage everything. He’s done very well.”

“Marcus has a fever and hasn’t been able to train yesterday or today. I have doubts about him playing tomorrow. But the good news is that Raphinha is back, and I really appreciate what he brings to the team. We’ll see tomorrow, but the important thing is that he’s back. He’ll start on the bench, though.”

Flick also discussed Pedri’s situation. The Barcelona manager said, “We’re taking it step by step, we’re not going to put pressure on him [Pedri]. That wouldn’t be right. But he’s doing well, he’s progressing well. We’re happy with how things are going. He will be back soon. Whether he’ll be back against Chelsea…I don’t know yet.”

Flick confirmed Joan Garcia’s readiness to start against Athletic Club, and the Spanish shot-stopper will return between the sticks, with Barcelona lining up in a 4-3-3 formation in front of him. The backline will feature Eric Garcia, Ronald Araujo, Pau Cubarsi, and Alejandro Balde.

As for the midfield unit, Marc Casado will replace the suspended Frenkie de Jong, joining Dani Olmo and Fermin Lopez in the middle of the park. Finally, Robert Lewandowski will lead the line for the home side against Athletic Club, with Lamine Yamal and Ferran Torres completing the numbers in the offensive third.

Predicted Barcelona XI: Joan Garcia; Garcia, Araujo, Cubarsi, Balde; Casado, Olmo, Lopez; Yamal, Lewandowski, Rashford