Official: Barcelona confirm knee injury to young full-back; set to miss 8-10 weeks | OneFootball

Barcelona have suffered yet another setback in what has already been a challenging period for the squad’s depth and long-term planning. 

The club confirmed that promising 18-year-old full-back Xavi Espart has picked up a knee injury that will rule him out for between eight and ten weeks. 

For a player who had been rapidly climbing the internal hierarchy and gaining the trust of Hansi Flick, the timing could hardly be worse.

The injury occurred during Espart’s participation in the latest Spanish U-19 training camp, where an awkward movement led to damage to the internal collateral ligament of his right knee. 

With the expected recovery set to push his return well into January, the youngster’s momentum has been abruptly halted just as he was beginning to break into the first-team dynamic.

Barcelona highlighted the seriousness of the issue in their official announcement.

“Barça Atletic player Xavi Espart has an injury to the internal collateral ligament of his right knee, which occurred during the last training camp with the Spanish U19 team. 

“The expected recovery time will be between 8 and 10 weeks,” read the statement.

This blow comes during a particularly fragile moment for Barcelona, as both the first team and Barça Atletic have seen multiple players halted by physical setbacks in recent months. 

Espart had become one of the brightest hopes among the academy ranks thanks to his discipline, tactical maturity and relentless intensity in every action. 

There were also internal plans to use Espart more frequently in the coming weeks to provide much-needed rest for Jules Kounde, who has been carrying discomfort, while allowing Eric Garcia to remain in the centre of defence. 

His versatility and reliability have made him a key option for a defence suffering from repeated injuries this season.