23-year-old Barcelona player is now also ruled out for the game against Real Madrid | OneFootball

The upcoming El Clásico comes at an ideal time for Hansi Flick. After managing his first matches on the Barcelona bench with a depleted defense and midfield, the German tactician will have several midfielders back in action for this crucial game.

Important players like Frenkie de Jong, Gavi, Dani Olmo, and Fermin Lopez, who were still recovering from their injuries when the October international break started, all played some minutes in the game against Bayern Munich.

Thus, they will all be available for selection for Flick, but the journalist Adria Albets reports that one Barcelona player who will be unavailable for Flick for the match against Real Madrid is Eric Garcia.

Although primarily a center-back, Eric Garcia was being deployed by Hansi Flick as a defensive midfielder due to several midfielders being sidelined with injuries.

The Spaniard experienced discomfort during the warm-up ahead of the game against Sevilla, where he was expected to start in the defensive midfield role. Garcia remained absent for the ensuing game against Bayern Munich as well.

Against Sevilla, Flick deployed Marc Casado and Pedri as his two midfield pivot options, while playing Raphinha as an attacking midfielder, giving his position on the left wing to Ansu Fati.

Against Bayern Munich, the German kept the midfield pivot the same, and played Fermin Lopez as the most advanced midfielder, while returning Raphinha to the wing, and got amazing returns with such a lineup.

But for the upcoming game against Real Madrid, Flick will have several more options in his hand. Frenkie de Jong can get his first start of the season against the same team that he was injured in the latter phases of last season and will be one of the options for the pivot position.

Gavi might still need some time before being able to play games from the very start. Still, Flick is not likely to miss Eric Garcia too much in the midfield, as he has already got several reinforcements for this area in the last few days.

However, the squad depth of Barcelona at center-back is thin, with key defenders Ronald Araujo and Andreas Christensen still sidelined due to injuries, while Jules Kounde continues to cover at right-back. This leaves only Pau Cubarsi and Inigo Martinez as available first-team center-backs for Hansi Flick.

To address this shortage, Flick has promoted Sergi Domínguez from the quarry, and while Domínguez has stepped in to give Cubarsi and Martinez occasional rest, his inexperience is still a concern.

Flick is therefore eager to see Eric Garcia return to full fitness as soon as possible to reinforce the back line. Although Garcia’s injury is not serious, his return date remains uncertain.