Barcelona are desperately short of midfield options at the moment, with only Pablo Torre, Marc Casado and Pedri fit, although Eric Garcia and Raphinha can operate in the system that Hansi Flick has been using. It is only growing the anticipation for the return of Gavi though.
Returning to training with the group last week, Gavi is nearing a return from his brutal anterior cruciate ligament injury and meniscus damage that he suffered in November of last year. The 20-year-old is aiming to return after the October international break, as per MD, with Sevilla’s visit to Montjuic the first of four clashes that he is likely to be back for on the 20th of October.
Two weeks later, the Blaugrana host Espanyol, which looks like the latter option, in the Catalan derby, which is scheduled for the weekend of the third of November. Between those two ties are sandwiched headline fixtures against Bayern Munich and Real Madrid, although clearly such intense games are not the ideal for Gavi to return in. That said, if he is ready to go, then he will no doubt make himself available.
Gavi is still not doing the full training sessions with the rest of his teammates, but from the looks of it, he will have an entire month of training under his belt before he gets back on the pitch. The Blaugrana will be desperate not to lose Gavi again this season, with little in the way of depth in midfield. Currently, Frenkie de Jong, Fermin Lopez, Dani Olmo and Marc Bernal are all still out injured too.