Rodri set for Barcelona debut as champions host Athletic | OneFootball

Spotify Camp Nou hosts Barcelona’s first home game of the season against Athletic Club at 21:00, and Rodri Hernández is set for his official debut. Hansi Flick has confirmed he will give the midfielder his first minutes.

As reported by as.com, Rodri has trained with the group for three days after back surgery. The likeliest plan is for him to start on the bench and, depending on the flow of the match, come on in the second half.

His arrival has stirred huge anticipation among Barça fans. He was applauded at the team presentation, helped by his refusal to sign for Real Madrid. Now comes the chance to watch him in blaugrana colours.

The champions opened their title defence with a 0-5 win at Elche, looking sharp even without a classic centre forward. At the Martínez Valero, Raphinha and Fermín impressed as false nine, with Adeyemi and Gordon prominent.

Gavi misses out after a knee knock in Elche, Balde could return to the squad. Pedri and Gordon are in line to start.

Athletic began the Edin Terzic era with defeat to Sevilla at San Mamés, where an early Yuri sending off and a goalkeeping error proved costly. Laporte and Nico Williams are available, lifting their quality.

A midfield pairing of Canales and Gerenabarrena is likely to be retained. Yuri is suspended after a red card the CTA deemed unfair, so Adama will come in. Athletic aim to end 24 years without a win at Barça’s ground, a run of 21 defeats and 3 draws.

Source: as.com

“Artificial intelligence was used to assist in creating this article based on reporting from the original source quoted.”