Barca are on a high after beating Madrid in the Spanish Super Cup, but their victory in Saudi Arabia has come at a cost.
Barcelona have revealed that centre-back Iñigo Martínez suffered a right hamstring tear during the 5-2 Spanish Super Cup defeat to Real Madrid in Saudi Arabia, which will sideline him for a month.
Which Barcelona games will Iñigo Martínez miss?
As a result, Martínez will miss Wednesday's Copa del Rey match against Real Betis (and possibly the quarter-finals in the week of February 5), as well as LaLiga matches against Getafe, Valencia, Alavés and Sevilla, and Champions League matches against Benfica and Atalanta.
Martínez's absence is a big blow for Barça as he has had an excellent first half of the season. The 33-year-old has been a key figure in the center of defense and is showing exactly the type of leadership and character that has been missing from the team in recent years.
However, home defeats to Las Palmas, Leganés and Atlético Madrid have seen Barça slip from the top of the LaLiga table, now six points behind Diego Simeone's side and five behind Real Madrid. Closing the gap will be all the more difficult without Martínez stabilizing his presence at the back.
Will Ronald Araújo leave Barcelona in January?
Moreover, Martínez's injury directly affects Ronald Araújo.
During a press conference, Barcelona president Joan Laporta was non-committal about Araújo's future, leaving the decision to Deco, the club's sporting director. Many expect Araújo to leave this week, although Barcelona's attitude could now change, potentially seeing him stay until the end of the season.
According to several sources, Araújo wants to move on, which appears to be confirmed by television images of Robert Lewandowski appearing to beg the Uruguayan to stay after Sunday's memorable Clásico win.
Original article written by Juan Jiménez, translated with the help of AI and edited by Roddy Cons.
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