MADRID, Aug. 30 (Xinhua) -- FC Barcelona midfielder Gavi will miss Sunday's trip to play Rayo Vallecano and has been ruled out Spain's World Cup qualifiers against Bulgaria and Türkiye with a knee injury.
The club confirmed the news in a post on its official website and on social media on Saturday morning, explaining that "Pablo Paez Gaviria, 'Gavi', is experiencing discomfort in his right knee."
"He will miss Sunday's match against Rayo Vallecano, and his availability will depend on how his recovery progresses," continues the communique.
Gavi experienced the problem during Friday's training session and had tests on Saturday morning. This is the same knee in which he suffered a torn cruciate ligament in November 2023, which left him out of action for almost a year.
The good news for Barca ahead of Sunday's match at the Vallecas Stadium is that the club has been able to register left-back Gerard Martin in the first-team squad, after wage ceiling issues had meant he was unable to be included for Barca's first two games of the season.
The main question mark over the match is whether coach Hansi Flick will be able to include attacking midfielder Fermin Lopez, with Chelsea making an offer to buy the player, and Barca knowing that a sale would end its financial fair play issues for the summer.
Barca visits Vallecas with Rayo celebrating qualification for the Conference League group stage on Thursday night, and with morale sky high. Coach Inigo Perez was able to rest key players for the 4-0 win over Neman Grodno, and players such as Pathe Ciss should be in perfect condition for what promises to be an entertaining match. ■