Flick reveals one Barcelona starter vs Inter and tests for injured midfielder | OneFootball

Barcelona coach Hansi Flick confirms Wojciech Szczesny will return in goal against Inter, while injured Gavi will undergo tests today.

Barcelona secured a 2-1 win over Valladolid on Saturday night, three days before the second leg of the Champions League semifinal against Inter.

Lamine Yamal started on the bench, but Flick was forced to introduce the Spanish star before the halftime break following Dani Rodriguez’s injury.

Pedri picked up a knock in the final minutes and is now in doubt for Tuesday’s game at San Siro.

Barcelona midfielder Gavi to undergo tests after injury

Gavi of FC Barcelona attempts to control the ball whilst under pressure from Ederson of Atalanta during the UEFA Champions League 2024/25 League Phase MD8 match between FC Barcelona and Atalanta BC at Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys on January 29, 2025 in Barcelona, Spain. (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images)

“It’s not a lesion,” Flick said at a post-match press conference via Marca.

“He’s fine, in any case, we’ll examine him tomorrow [Sunday].

Flick confirmed that Yamal was only introduced because of Dani Rodriguez’s injury, while he had “planned” to play Pedri and De Jong for 45 minutes each.

The Spain international started the game, but was replaced by the Dutchman during the break.

Marc André Ter Stegen returned to action after several months, but Flick said Szczesny would start against Inter.

“Szczesny will play against Inter and Real Madrid,” concluded the Barcelona coach.

Inter updates

Inter beat Hellas Verona at San Siro on Saturday, but Simone Inzaghi was suspended so his assistant Massimiliano Farris led the team from the touchline and spoke to the media after the game.

“The intensity, concentration and desire to take the initiative were all still there. We knew it would not be easy to find spaces against Verona, we could’ve moved it quicker in the second half once those spaces opened up a little bit, but we had the right attitude,” Farris said.

“We had many players who haven’t played together for many minutes, so they needed to get to know each other better, but they all stepped up to the plate.”

Talking about Barcelona and the injured Lautaro Martinez, Farris added: “There is great confidence. We played with courage against one of the best teams in the world, when we were coming off a very difficult moment.

“It is true that it’s not a lesion, so there is a little hope, but at the moment it’s more no than yes. He [Lautaro] hasn’t trained, we’ll try everything of course because it is a fundamental match, but it’s more no than yes right now, unfortunately.”