Which Barcelona star played the most for their national team this summer? | OneFootball

Barcelona faced significant setbacks following the European Championship and Copa America, where key players like Pedri and Ronald Araujo returned with injuries.

The toll on Barcelona’s squad due to international duties was unmistakable, with several players exceeding 300 minutes of play for their respective national teams.

At the forefront, French defender Jules Kounde and Spanish rising star Lamine Yamal stood out for logging the most minutes.

Which Barcelona player played the most?

Interestingly, Kounde featured in all six matches for France until their semi-final exit against Spain, starting each game and accumulating a total of 570 minutes on the field, the highest among Barcelona’s contingent.

The defender was never substituted by Didier Deschamps and he even played the entire 120 minutes against Portugal in the quarter-final round.

Jules Kounde played every minute of Euro 2024. (Photo by Alex Livesey/Getty Images)

Following Kounde closely, Yamal contributed 508 minutes, pivotal to Spain’s campaign, earning recognition as the tournament’s best young player, with his only rest being the start of the third group stage match against Albania.

Further down the list, in what could be dubbed the “300 Club,” were Ilkay Gundogan (385 minutes), Andreas Christensen (351 minutes), and Joao Cancelo (349 minutes).

These players were essential starters for Germany, Denmark, and Portugal respectively, throughout their teams’ matches.

What about the rest?

Tracking behind them with fewer than 300 minutes were Raphinha (260 minutes) with Brazil, Araujo (258 minutes) with Uruguay, Pedri (190 minutes), Ferran Torres (152 minutes) with Spain, Robert Lewandowski (120 minutes) with Poland, Joao Felix (105 minutes) with Portugal, and Fermin Lopez (28 minutes) with Spain.

Right now, attention turns to their return to Barcelona’s fold after a well-deserved vacation.

Most players began their summer break between June 26 and recently, with some, like Lewandowski and Christensen, likely returning earlier due to earlier exits from their tournaments. Others will follow suit gradually, except for Fermin as he will be participating in the Paris Olympics.