Barcelona mainstay Pedri set to miss Real Madrid clash, could return vs Real Sociedad

In what could be a devastating blow for Barcelona, midfield mainstay Pedri is unlikely to return from injury for the blockbuster clash against Real Madrid this weekend, reports Sergi Capdevila of SPORT.

Barça face Real Madrid in the first El Clasico of the season later this Saturday at Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys.

And, they are sweating over the availability of four key players in Robert Lewandowski, Raphinha, Frenkie de Jong, and Pedri.

Reports suggest that Lewandowski is in a race against time to be ready for the big match while De Jong’s involvement is far from certain as well. Raphinha, though, appears to be in a position to return, but the same cannot be said of Pedri.

Pedri still not training

Despite there being hopes that Pedri would be back soon after the international break, it has not materialised, leading to question marks over his availability for the Clasico.

The midfielder did not train with the rest of his Barcelona teammates on Monday and taking into account that Tuesday’s session will be ‘light’ as it is a pre-match against Shakhtar, it is already impossible that Pedri could have minutes against the Ukrainian champions.

In the best-case scenario, the former Las Palmas wonderkid will join the group at some point later this week. It would mean that, after two months injured, he should reappear in a very high-intensity match like the Clasico.

Considering that Barcelona do not want to take the slightest risk with the midfielder, everything suggests that Pedri will not return to action against Real Madrid.

Real Sociedad game likely return date

Instead, the match against Real Sociedad on November 4 is being earmarked as the potential comeback date for Pedri.

Barça believe that next week, when there will be no Champions League action, is a much more optimal scenario for the 20-year-old’s return.

There will be more group training sessions and there will not be the added pressure of playing a match against the eternal rival, making it more conducive for the club to ease Pedri back into action.