An up-and-coming member of the attacking ranks at La Liga giants Barcelona is set for an extended incoming spell on the sidelines. The Blaugrana starlet in question? Ebrima Tunkara.

The name of youngster Tunkara will of course have become a more familiar one to many of a Barca persuasion this past summer.

Widely considered one of the standout talents currently honing their craft at La Masia, the 16-year-old was afforded a place in Hansi Flick’s first-team setup for pre-season training over the last couple of months.

Tunkara made use of the opportunity to continue building on his glowing reputation, expected to make the jump to senior duties on a permanent basis in the not-so-distant future.

As alluded to above, however, this week, the Spanish youth international has been dealt an early-season setback.

After playing his part in Barca Atlètic’s clash with Vilanova over the weekend, Tunkara picked up a fitness problem. And as confirmed in an ensuing statement released by the Catalans, the issue in question is expected to keep him on the sidelines for around six weeks:

‘Barça Atlètic player Ebrima Tunkara has a traumatic ligament injury to his left ankle, which occurred during the match against CF Vilanova this Sunday. The approximate time out is six weeks.’