Hansi Flick confirms key Barcelona pair won’t start vs Real Madrid | OneFootball

Barcelona head coach Hansi Flick has ruled two key members of his squad out of contention for starting berths in tomorrow’s crunch showdown with Real Madrid.

The pair in question? Robert Lewandowski, and Alejandro Balde.

Both striker Lewandowski and defender Balde have of course spent recent weeks on the sidelines, owing to respective muscular injuries.

In the case of the former, his recovery progressed more quickly, culminating in an appearance off the bench against Inter Milan in midweek.

Balde, on the other hand, only returned to group training over the last couple of days.

Both players, though, are facing up to the same reality this weekend.

This comes in the form of confirmation that they will be forced to watch on from the bench in tomorrow’s final Clásico of the campaign.

Speaking to the media in his pre-match press conference on Saturday, Hansi Flick announced:

“I don’t think either Balde or Lewandowski will start El Clásico, maybe they will get minutes in the second half. Gerard Martin is doing very well.”

Conor Laird – GSFN