Lamine Yamal will return to the Barcelona starting lineup for the UEFA Champions League clash with Paris Saint-Germain at Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys on Wednesday.
Barcelona will aim to continue the unbeaten start to the 2025/26 season when they welcome Paris Saint-Germain to Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys in Matchday 2 of the UEFA Champions League on Wednesday night. Hansi Flick has no new injury concerns to worry about ahead of his side’s latest fixture.
Marc-Andre ter Stegen (back), Joan Garcia (knee), Gavi (knee), Fermin Lopez (back), and Raphinha (hamstring) remain in the treatment room, with the latter the closest to returning. Alejandro Balde will hope to return to action in the midweek Champions League clash after regaining fitness.
Meanwhile, during his pre-match press conference, Flick expressed confidence in his squad’s depth to sustain the challenge on all fronts in a long and arduous season. The German tactician also provided a fitness update on Lamine Yamal.
The Barcelona manager said, “It’s not that I haven’t found the right formula; it’s because I have confidence in the whole team, and there’s a lot of quality. It’s good that it’s like this. You see all the injuries there are, and PSG too. We have to manage it well. We’re missing important players in midfield, but we have to have confidence in the young players.”
“For me, hyping a player up so much isn’t good. We’re focused on working hard. He’s [Yamal] talented and can go very high. He can reach higher levels, but he has to work hard. It’s not just about how good you are with the ball, but you also have to work defensively.”
Wojciech Szczesny is an automatic pick between the sticks in the absence of Garcia and ter Stegen, and Barcelona will line up in a 4-2-3-1 formation in front of him against PSG on Wednesday. The backline will feature Jules Kounde, Eric Garcia, Pau Cubarsi, and Gerard Martin.
As for the midfield unit, there is no looking past Pedri and Frenkie de Jong in the double pivot in the middle of the park. Dani Olmo will reprise the no. 10 role, with Lamine Yamal and Marcus Rashford being the two wide attackers. Finally, Robert Lewandowski will lead the line for the home side against PSG on Wednesday.
Predicted Barcelona XI: Szczesny; Kounde, Eric Garcia, Cubarsi, Martin; Pedri, de Jong; Yamal, Olmo, Rashford; Lewandowski