Barcelona boss Hansi Flick said his third win in charge of the club would have been a happy one, if not for the injury to midfielder Marc Bernal. The 17-year-old came off in the dying moments of their 2-1 win over Rayo Vallecano after twisting his knee.
The worst fears were confirmed the next day, Bernal he had torn his anterior cruciate ligament and damaged his meniscus, perhaps the most feared of the “regular injuries” in football. On Monday, the Blaugrana confirmed that Bernal had undergone successful surgery on his knee, and will be out for 12 months in theory.
Ansu Fati could make his season debut against Girona on Sunday. He trained with the group and said goodbye to his foot injury. @curtinas_victor
— Barcacentre (@barcacentre) September 9, 2024
Bernal's injury was a major blow Barcelona and Flick. After a promising pre-season, the German coach seemed to have targeted a prominent role this season at the base of the midfield, as evidenced by him starting all three games at the start of the year. Flick noted that Marc Casado and Eric Garcia were his main alternativeshighlights how good the Blaugrana team is this year.
