Barcelona star dropped to bench for first time this season vs Racing | OneFootball

A member of the defensive ranks at La Liga giants Barcelona has on Wednesday been forced to make do with a place on the bench for the first time this domestic season.

The player in question? Xavi Espart.

Youngster Espart is for his part of course fresh off nothing short of a brilliant individual opening to the new campaign. Fending off competition from the more high-profile João Cancelo and Alejandro Balde, the Spaniard, at just 19, has locked down the left-back spot in Hansi Flick’s XI.

Across five La Liga starts to date, Espart has racked up a goal and two assists.

As alluded to above, though, on Wednesday, with the fixtures coming thick and fast ahead of the international break, the young stopper has at last been afforded a rest.

Ahead of a meeting with newly-promoted Racing Santander, Hansi Flick has opted for João Cancelo as his starting left-back for the evening:

Conor Laird – GSFN