- Oct 16, 2026
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SportsMafia Wire graphic. Photo: Wutthichai Charoenburi from Bangkok via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0. Team logos via ESPN.
Barcelona will be without defender Eric García for Tuesday's Champions League match against Paris Saint-Germain and Sunday's Clásico against Real Madrid after sustaining a thigh injury during Saturday's victory at Real Betis. The club estimates he could miss up to four weeks.
Fellow defender Jules Koundé also left the Betis match with a sprained ankle and will miss the PSG fixture. His availability for the Clásico remains uncertain pending further assessment.
Manager Hansi Flick faces a shortage of options at right-back, with neither of the players used in that position this season available. João Cancelo and Xavi Espart, both natural left-backs, can fill in there, as can Alejandro Balde. In central defence, Andreas Christensen is also sidelined with a thigh problem, leaving Pau Cubarsí and Gerard Martín as the only available centre-backs before Tuesday. Rodri and Frenkie de Jong have previously played in the back line, and Flick indicated de Jong could be an option there following his return to training last week.
Raphinha featured as a substitute versus Betis and is cleared for both Tuesday and Sunday. Barcelona has won all 11 matches across all competitions this season.
Real Betis manager Manuel Pellegrini criticised the officiating in his side's defeat, calling them "inexplicable decisions."
Source: ESPN - Sun Oct 18, 1:05 PM ET
Written by the SportsMafia Wire desk in our own words from the original reporting (AI-assisted, checked against the source).