Valverde facing centre-back crisis as Vivián a serious doubt for Copa quarter-final at Mestalla | OneFootball

Athletic could travel to Mestalla on Wednesday without a recognised centre-back for their Copa quarter-final. According to El Correo, Laporte and Egiluz are injured, Paredes and Yeray are suspended, and Dani Vivián is a serious doubt with muscle problems. He was not seen during the 15-minute section of Monday’s training that was open to the media.

Five players are being managed carefully, Egiluz, Prados, Laporte, Vivián and Maroan, while Nico Williams is hampered by pubalgia. He and the club are weighing a prolonged rest to ease the pain and aid his recovery, with June’s World Cup in mind.

Valverde said he does not know whether he can count on Laporte or Vivián, describing Laporte as difficult and noting Vivián has not trained for a week. He will wait until the last moment to see if at least one can return.

If neither makes it, Athletic will field an improvised pairing at centre-back, with Yuri again moving inside. Options include another full-back such as Lekue or a promotion from the reserves, with Jon de Luis and Iker Monreal limited to friendlies so far.

Valverde accepts the scale of the problem, saying it is not normal to reach a Copa quarter-final with four centre-backs out. In fact it is five, as Egiluz suffered a cruciate injury in August and remains out.

Source: El Correo