As Barcelona begin UEFA Champions League play in the 2025/26 season with a visit to Newcastle Unitede, Lamine Yamal’s absence will leave fans concerned about the team’s ability to perform without their young superstar.
Believed likely to contend for the Ballon d’Or in under a week’s time, Lamine Yamal has been critical to Barcelona’s success since the start of last season. His excellence helped the Blaugrana to a semifinal spot in last year’s European club tournament, only to fall just short of a final appearance at the hands of Inter Milan.
This year, the club is hoping not only to repeat as La Liga title winners but also push for their first Champions League crown in over a decade.
Thus, it’s understandable that Barcelona are sensitive to their star winger’s treatment while away from the club’s watchful eye, and having picked up an injury on international duty, manager Hansi Flick and the rest of the Barcelona hierarchy have become incensed at what they believe was an avoidable circumstance.
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Where is Lamine Yamal? Spain injury sees Barcelona star miss Newcastle game
Having missed Barcelona training on Tuesday, Lamine Yamal is out for their Champions League visit to Newcastle on Thursday.
The La Liga giants will have to make do without their 18-year-old star after he aggravated a groin injury while playing for Spain over the September international break.
He missed the 6-0 victory over Valencia last weekend and may be out for the foreseeable future as he recovers from the issue.
According to reports, the injury has been categorised as “pubalgia,” which is a chronic groin injury that requires constant treatment and watchfulness. Pubalgia, also known as a “sports hernia” despite not actually being a true hernia, results from a strain of the soft tissue in the lower abdominal region.
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Hansi Flick rages at Spain federation for Lamine Yamal overuse
Barcelona are of the belief that Lamine Yamal’s injury could have been avoided with prudent treatment, leading the club to publicly criticise the Spanish federation for overusing their young star.
Flick revealed that the player’s groin issue was known to the federation upon his arrival at international camp, and it had forced him out of training with the rest of the Spain squad.
Yet despite this, Luis de la Fuente still deployed the youngster in World Cup qualifying victories over Bulgaria and Turkey, with Flick revealing the winger needed painkillers to be fit to participate.
“It’s a pity because he goes to the national team with some pain,” Flick said. “He didn’t train at all with the national team. He took painkillers to play.”
Flick’s argument was that Spain have plenty of talent that they should have been able to secure results in those matches without Lamine Yamal, protecting their young star while still performing on the pitch.
“They scored over three goals in every match,” Flick argued. “After the Bulgaria game, in between matches, he did not train again. This is not taking care of players. Spain have the best team in the world. The best players in every position, unbelievably good. Maybe when we talk about taking care of young players, it’s things like that. I’m very sad about this.”
This isn’t the first time the RFEF has been criticised for overusing young players. The federation also received flak for giving young Barcelona midfield duo Gavi and Pedri significant minutes early in their careers. Both players later sustained muscle and soft tissue injuries that many linked to their heavy work load.
According to Marca, Barca and the RFEF have vowed to establish a protocol to ensure such instances are avoided in future.
How long will Lamine Yamal be out injured?
Having already missed one La Liga match and now one Champions League match, it’s possible that Lamine Yamal’s absence could extend further than initially anticipated.
According to Spanish publication Mundo Deportivo, he could miss this weekend’s home league match against Getafe, and may even be subject to further absence after that.
Following Sunday’s match against Getafe, Barcelona have a league doubleheader the next week with games against Real Oviedo (Thursday) and Real Sociedad (Sunday) followed by a home Champions League date with Paris Saint-Germain, so the fixtures are coming thick and fast.
Lamine Yamal’s groin problem comes with a high risk of re-injury, so Barcelona have been advised to be cautious with his return.
