Earlier this month, Gavi made his long-awaited return to action. The 20-year-old midfielder had been out since last November after he suffered a serious knee injury whilst playing for Spain, and although he has now made his comeback, he is still far away from being back to 100% sharpness.
Eric García again didn't train with the group today. @javigasconMD
— barcacentre (@barcacentre) October 31, 2024
For the next few weeks at least, Barcelona head coach Hansi Flick has no plans to start Gavi in a match, with the idea being to build up his match sharpness with regular substitute appearances.
Despite this, Relevo say that Spain manager Luis de la Fuente is considering Gavi for a return to the national team for November’s UEFA Nations League fixtures against Denmark and Switzerland. The idea is for him to be with La Roja as soon as possible – if it’s not next month, it will be during the next international break in March.
Barcelona would surely be furious if Gavi received a Spain call-up next month, given that they are deliberating taking things slow with his recovery. Another bitter dispute between the Catalan club and the Spanish Football Federation could be in the offing.
Mbappe wasn’t even injured and Madrid made sure he didn’t have to report. No problems.
Now that the precedent has been set, Barca can make sure Gavi opts out too.